Behind These Mako Eyes
by JapaneseMiko
Summary: Series of one shots all related to each other. Vague Advent Children spoilers. CloudXSephiroth centric.
1. Behind These Hazel Eyes

Disclaimer: Squaresoft owns all right to previous game plot and affiliated characters mentioned. Some previous plot has been twisted under my interpretation. Behind These Hazel Eyes is sung by Kelly Clarkson and I didn't create it either. I changed the word 'hazel' in the song to 'Mako' for story purposes.

_**

* * *

****(Seems like just yesterday, you were a part of me.)**_

Cloud Strife stood looking out over the edge of a cliff and down into the decrepit city that Midgar had become. A rusty, enormous sword stood point down in the dirt beside him. He had no direction, no reason to live now that everything he once loved was gone. No one from his controversial past remained with him.

Zack had been gone for a long time now. Zack, the only one who would have been able to understand him. Zack, the only one who would have stood by him if there seemed to be any other way to end things. Zack, who wouldn't really make a difference after all because he was dead. His best friend was dead and it had been his fault.

Aries was dead, too. She had been murdered. He could have stopped it. He could have done something. He knew that the General was there. A part of him at least. The part of him that believed Sephiroth wasn't evil. Even her death had been his fault. She had believed him. She had stood by his side even when he was faltering. She had known the truth, but she wasn't here now. She hadn't been there then, when he'd made his biggest mistake of all.

_Sephiroth_.

His biggest mistake was also his greatest happiness. If only he could have seen from the very beginning what was happening. Then things wouldn't have gone the way they had. So many people wouldn't have had to die. He wouldn't have had to die.

Sephiroth.

_**(I used to stand so tall; I used to be so strong.**_

_**Your arms around me tight, everything it felt so right.**_

_**Unbreakable, like nothing could go wrong.) **_

Back in the day when things used to be so simple, no, things were never really simple. Back in the day when things used to be simpler than they ever had, Cloud and Sephiroth had found each other. It had been an accident at first, for sure. The Greatest General on the Planet had no need to find release among the cadets, or anything less than a SOLDIER First Class.

_Zack._

Sephiroth was Zack's friend. Cloud was Zack's friend. Zack was the factor that brought them together, as well as the one that had held them apart at one time. It had all just seemed to fit.

Then the awkward cadet had grown into a fitting young man. This man had undergone trials and tribulations that no man, woman, or child should have even had to think about, much less experience. He had changed. He was stronger, faster, and harder to kill than ever before. He _was _changed.

And not just on the outside. Inside he was on fire. He lost his best friend and found that his old love was being controlled by the evilest sentient being the Planet had ever seen. He was then forced to go against the one he'd loved. He was the only one capable of killing this man, of stopping the travesty that had been about to occur.

No one had stopped to ask how he might feel about it. No one had stopped to consider that he'd _known _this man that everyone feared. No one cared that he loved this so called villain. No one cared to know so long as he did what he was there to do. No one cared.

He had friends. He loved his friends to a point, all of them. From the annoying to the just plain spooky. He would walk through fire for them, but he would still drop everything and run if only there were a chance of Sephiroth's survival. He didn't want to kill the Planet, but he didn't want to kill his only happiness.

He'd been stuck.

_He had to do it._

_**(Now I can't breathe, no I can't sleep.I'm barely hanging on.**_

**_Here I am, once again._**

**_I'm torn into pieces, can't deny it, can't pretend._**

_**Just thought you were the one.) **_

Cloud sunk to the ground under the weight of his memories. It was his fault. His fault. All his fault. They were all dead now. Zack, Aries, Sephiroth. Every last one of them. All that he had ever held dear were dead. All that he had ever loved, each in their own way.

He thought that he had finally found peace all those years ago. He thought he'd finally found what he'd been looking for, but then it had been ripped away. Someone had reached out in the name of science and had destroyed his entire life. He'd been weak then. Weaker that he was now. There had been no way to stop it, but he couldn't help but feel like he should have done something.

But, seriously. What could he, the failed experiment, really accomplish? He couldn't save anyone. He couldn't even save his only friend, his only guidance, and his only love. He truly was a failure.

His life had become haunted with nightmares. He didn't even know when he was awake or asleep any longer. It was pathetic. For an ex-SOLDIER, AVALANCHE member, no, he was practically their leader now, to have nightmares about the past was just plain pathetic. He wasn't the only one, but he was the one that it wasn't expected from. He was the one that was supposed to stand strong.

_He was breaking._

It had started slowly at first. Before Hojo, before Nibelhiem, before it was too late to save Sephiroth. Before Jenova invaded every corner in the man's mind. It had started when he realized that he was never going to measure up to the expectations of ShinRa. He wasn't successful as a SOLDIER. He would never be accepted as lover to the General. The leader of ShinRa's armies needed the best and he was going to get it someday. If Hojo didn't interfere.

It had escalated since then until it had spread to encompass everything that had happened from that point onward. He couldn't get a grip on reality. He could feel it all slipping away, like sand through a strainer.

Why couldn't he find his own paradise?

_**(Broken up, deep inside.**_

_**But you won't get to see the tears I cry.**_

_**Behind these Mako eyes.)**_

He hadn't cried in a long time. He couldn't make himself, wouldn't make himself. Even when he'd been staring into the face of his former lover, locked in a battle of minds. A battle to the death. He didn't let his feelings through. He wouldn't let the General see him cry.

The source of his pain. The source of his love. The sourse of his only weakness.They really were one in the same, weren't they? Showing weakness was frowned upon in the rank of ShinRa. Sephiroth would not have responded well in seeing the tears. Things could have been worse, but keeping the emotions hidden was taking its toll as well. No one knew.

Of course, he could have told someone. He could have shown this raw piece of his soul to one of his companions, but they wouldn't have understood.

And how could they? Who would he tell?

Vincent: The strange vampiric man had his own secrets and shortcomings to deal with. He was convinced that he had sinned and had to atone for them. Not to mention the fact that he had to hold back a horde of bloodthirsty demons that resided in his mind and attempted to take over his body at the least opportune moments. No, he couldn't give Vincent another burden to add to the one already lying heavy on the other man's conscience.

Cid: The pilot had been there, not from the beginning, though he might as well have for all anyone else cared. But he'd never really understood what Cloud had been going trough during their long journey. The uncouth man had wanted to get back at ShinRa for his own reasons. And besides, Cloud have never become close to the man. Only Vincent really had.

Yuffie: The ninja had to run Wutai now. She couldn't be distracted with something as confusing as Cloud's feelings. Cloud didn't even understand them. She was young, and her life stretched on ahead of her. There was no need to drag her into a place she had no real reason to be in.

Nanaki: The odd creature was out of the picture for sure, even though he would be the wisest. He would be the one who would know what to do. He would give good advice, but Cloud didn't want to hear good advice. Cloud didn't want to know how to correct his problems. They wouldn't be his problems if he couldn't figure them out on his own. He needed someone to know, not someone to play repairman in his mind.

Barrett: He had Marlene. He didn't need anything to jeopardize that. As loyal as the man had been in the past. He wasn't what Cloud needed at the moment.

Tifa: Now there was an enigma. Girl from his childhood. Never really friendly. Never really caring until he had reappeared in his home town as a SOLDIER years later. He'd made something of himself back then. Not something he was proud of. Not something he would ever be proud of. But something he could deal with. Something he could cope with when he looked in the mirror. Tifa hadn't understood him back then and she wouldn't understand him now. She couldn't care enough. She would never care enough, even though she thought she already did. Cloud could see past the lie.

No one would ever see his unshed tears.

_**(I told you everything, opened up and let you in.**_

_**You made me feel alright, for once in my life. **_

**_Now all that's left of me is what I pretend to be. _**

_**So together, but so broken up inside.)**_

He'd told Sephiroth everything about himself. He'd given the man the ammo he'd used later on in life. He'd been the one to open his soul to the twisted man in an attempt to gain back the man that had once resided there. He'd done everything but lay down in front of him and give him every little weapon and fancy that he'd wanted to destroy the Planet.

No, he thought to himself, I did that, too.

It was his fault. He let in the enemy. The enemy had resided in his very soul, masquerading as the man who'd sat up with him at night. The man who'd held his hand when he felt as though he couldn't go on. The man who, while being cold and heartless on the outside, was really a kindhearted person caught in the middle of a brutal war within himself. The man who was supposed to protect was the one who needed the protecting, from himself.

_And Cloud hadn't done the protecting._

And then he'd found himself on the opposite side of the battle. Exiled from SOLDIER, knowing that he had to somehow find a way to stop the end of the Planet, and knowing that he had to be brave and face his fate. To destroy, and see destroyed, everything he'd ever found the least bit of comfort in.

Sure, he'd put on a brave face, crackingterribly corny jokes to lighten the mood and keep his ragtag band of heroes together through every adversary imaginable. He'd done a good job in that respect at least. Bonds had been formed and lifelong friendship had sprung out of the chaos, but he hadn't been all right then.

He'd been breaking into tiny pieces, scattering, like his memories of a better time and place, along the currents of the wind. He couldn't retrieve himself now. The last bits were buried now. Buried with his lover, with his enemy that refused to stay a memory.

Buried with his only hope at having his only true love restored to normal.

**_(Cause I can't breathe, no I can't sleep. _**

**_I'm barely hanging on. _**

**_Here I am, once again. _**

**_I'm torn into pieces, can't deny it, can't pretend. _**

_**Just thought you were the one.)**_

Cloud was thrown out of his reminiscing at the sound of familiar footsteps behind him. He jumped to his feet and pulled his large sword from its sheath. The clean and shining metal of the obviously well-kept sword practically glowed in contrast to the rusted blade that lay everything but forgotten behind him.

_"Sephiroth?"_

But how could it be? He'd been killed! Twice! By Cloud's own hands. By Cloud's own technique. Omnislashed by Cloud's own sword. Twice! Not even the Great General would be able to survive that. His vessel had been destroyed.

The only failed experiment left for Jenova to convert was himself and he was pretty sure that he would have realized if he'd turned into the new Sephiroth. But there was something different about the man that stood in front of him.

The eyes were still an eerie shade of greenish blue, and they still glowed from the Mako content in his body. The eyes were glowing now, as he knew that his were as well. Mako reacting to Mako. The face was still as pale as pale could be and still remain human. The silver hair still cascaded down broad shoulders to the beginning of his leather-clad muscular calves. Still immaculately groomed as always. But there was something missing. Where was the sardonic smile that graced the normally solemn features in that well-known face? When Jenova had been in control, that smile had rarely, if ever left the man's countenance.

The haunted shadow of lunacy had left the man's eyes.

"Cloud?"

_**(Swallow me, then spit me out. **_

_**For hating you, I blame myself. **_

_**Seeing you, it kills me now. **_

**_No, I don't cry on the outside anymore._**

_**Anymore.)**_

Sane. He was sane. He remembered. He wasn't being controlled. He wasn't a vessel. He was Sephiroth, the Sephiroth from before Nibelhiem. Though not perfect, he was still better than what he had become.

And Cloud still loved him.

The realization was like a sucker-punch to the gut. He knew that he'd never truly stopped loving the man, but to feel the poignancy of that love firsthand again, nearly winded the swordsman in a way that no battle ever could. He still wanted Sephiroth. No, he still needed Sephiroth. Healthy, sane, perfect Sephiroth.

But he was still forced to hate him. He was still forced to be wary around him. To search for the slightest hint that the evil was still there. The smallest sign that Sephiroth was anything other than himself. He would never be able to forget the sight of the Masamune sliding out of the body of Aries.

Aries, so innocent and undeserving of her fate.

_'Cloud?What has happened here? Why do I feel as though I have done something unforgivable? Why do I sense that you hate me?' _Cloud stumbled back as the voice invaded his mind. Sephiroth touched a hand to his lips with a bewildered look on his face. That look didn't belong there. Cloud couldn't take it anymore.

"Why are you still alive?" He said out loud, more of to prove to Sephiroth that he didn't have to delve into his mind to speak, and because he found the link between him and his counterpart as slightly creepy and preferred not to use it due to the pain it took to open it from his side. Jenova was strong and did not take it in stride when someone tried to halt her plans, be them mental or physical.

But how could he go against Sephiroth knowing that the man didn't remember a single thing he'd done?

Knowing that telling the man the truth would probably break him past the point of no return?

Knowing that he would lose him again?

Cloud didn't think he could ever be that strong.

"Should I be dead?" The utter confusion in the other man's voice almost threw Cloud for a loop, and Cloud took a staggering step back in the face of his own realization.Sephiroth honestly didn't remember all the terrible things he'd done. The mercenary didn't want to even think it, but the hope was clawing it's way out of the dark recess it usually hid in. He could feel his heart warming with the tendrils of pure hope that were finally surfacing after staying hidden for so long.

_Maybe Sephiroth could be saved._

Then, suddenly, they both collapsed...

* * *

Cloud felt like he was in the process of being pushed through a meat grinder. His head pounded and every part of his body was throbbing painfully. He seemed to reach out to grab something and almost recoiled in surprise to find it there once his hand connected with the solid thing for which he had been groping for. 

A hand.

And the hand closed around his own in recognition.

Memories were being shoved back into his head with the force of an oncoming runaway train. Colors, sights, sounds and feelings were all being reintroduced into his memory banks at the speed of light. Satisfaction, hurt, pride,pain, agony, embarrassment, contentment, happiness, love,regret, more and more pain, loneliness, overwhelming sadness, despair, and then numbing nothingness followed by a heaping pile of guilt. His entire life was there in front of him, the all but forgotten memoriesbegging to be placed back where they belonged. Begging to return to his conscious instead of being hidden away for all eternity.

**_(Cause I can't breathe, no I can't sleep._**

**_I'm barely hanging on._**

**_Here I am, once again._**

**_I'm torn into pieces, can't deny it, can't pretend._**

**_Just thought you were the one.)_**

His breathing slowed as he felt another presence in his mind, nothing quite so demanding or repulsive as the previous one. Warmth began to flood into his ragged soul and fill in the incomplete spaces easily. The presence seemed to envelope him and throw up a shield against the invading force.

He could see them in the shield.

_All of them._

Aries, standing serenely next to Zack. Zack, always with that same mischievous smirk on his face. That same impish twinkle in his eyes that told you he was planning some new trick or hilarious deception. They were holding on the each other and smiling at him each one holding out their free hand in his direction, telling him that it was all right this time. He could grip their hands without fear.

This time he would be going home to stay.

**_(Broken up, deep inside._**

**_But you won't get to see the tears I've cried.)_**

_Sephiroth._

He was there, in all his glory. The angel amongst his mortal court. The man behind the mask. The man who had hidden behind the tough exterior of a ShinRa general, no, _the _ShinRa General. The man who'd only been seen on rare occasions by those closest to him. The man who'd been thrown behind the facade of Jenova's ultimate wrath for everything good and living on the Planet.

Cloud's Sephiroth.

The man held out his pale hand, devoid of glove, devoid of the hideous scar that had once stood there, stark black against the seemingly delicate skin. Devoid of everything that had once marked him as Hojo's pet project.

And Cloud took it.

* * *

Later it was to be the high point of controversy between the surviving AVALANCHE members. Exactly what happened that day on the cliff overlooking Neo-Midgar was something they would never know in it's entirety. Some things just weren't meant to be known. 

But none of them would ever truly forget that day, though they would soon diverge and go their separate ways, none really losing contact with the others.

It had been cold, as it usually was now that Jenova's threat had been vanquished for the second time, and the AVALANCHE members had been wandering the city, doing the normal things they did when there was nothing threatening the delicate balance between Lifestream and the population.

That's when they'd gotten the feeling that something wasn't entirely right...

They had quickly touched base and regrouped at the new Seventh Heaven and took off into the wilderness that surrounded Midgar. Neither one could explain it in words, but they just knew that it was too late to stop whatever was happening. They knew it had to do with Cloud and that it, whatever it was, was going to have dire consequences, but they couldn't bring themselves to face the reality, even when it had been staring them in the face.

_Cloud was gone._

It was so brutal, just _seeing_ it like that. Cloud, laying there, not breathing, not moving. The man who used to be so full of life not doing anything at all. Would never do anything again.

No preparation. No warning. No big battle with amazing shows of skill and prowess. No friends nearby to lend a helping hand when things were looking grim. No big flashy show or sparks resulting from the clashings of steel on steel. Buster on Masamune.

He was just gone.

And the strangest thing of all at the time, was Sephiroth's body, also withno apparent signs of struggle or wounds, laying not even two feet away. Also dead.

They hadn't even known Sephiroth had begun to live again.

But the strangest thing of all was what registered in their minds much later, after the screams of anguish and the silent tears. After they had clung to each other andattempted to tearout their hair in grief for the one man that had united them all. Right before they were about to delicately take the bodies and give them both hero's burials, for Sephiroth had been a hero in his own right. Misguided though he may have been towards the end of his life.

The thing that would plague the minds of Cloud's former partners and friends for years and years to come.

The two enemies had peaceful looks on their faces, as though they had known what was coming and had embraced it. Had walked into it without a second thought or the slightest hint of fear. Had known it was where they belonged.

They were holding hands...

And the tell-tale sign oftears streaked their faces...

**_(Behind these Mako eyes)_**


	2. Dare You to Move

**_Disclaimer: _**I do not own Final Fantasy VII characters. I did not write, nor do I preform the enclosed song, Dare You to Move.**_

* * *

_**

**_Welcome to the Planet_**

_**Welcome to existence**_

_**Everyone's here**_

_**Everyone's here**_

_**Everybody's watching you now**_

_**Everybody waits for you now**_

_**What happens next?**_

Vincent had stumbled into town with the rest of them. Numb, just as much in shock as everyone else. He had been charged with carrying the body of the General. No one else seemed to have dropped quite all their malice for the man.

At least Vincent didn't hold grudges against poor Sephiroth. When the voices got into your head and made it their permanent home, it got harder and harder not to do what they wanted. He knew from experience. It might not be Jenova trying to hurl bits of space rock at the Planet he had to deal with, but his demons were no less terrifying to him.

His friends were at risk, and they were more precious to him than thousands of strangers anyway.

The first people to show him kindness. The first people to show they cared, even if it was only in the slightest bit. Almost all of them had started out fearing him, but what did that really matter when they'd all came around in the end? He would defend them all to the death.

There really wasn't anything else for him to live for, now was there?

He couldn't help but look down at the pale, lifeless face of the man that might or might not have been his son. So this was it. This was the great end to the greatest man ever to walk the Planet. It seemed so hollow some how. No one was going to remember him for all the good things he'd done. For all the lives he'd saved. The people of the Planet were going to walk by this man's grave and think 'Here lies the psycho that tried to hurl a giant meteor into us. Why does he even have a grave site?'

And he was going to be laid to rest next to the hero that had defeated him and saved the Planet from certain doom.

How's that for irony?

Vincent was pulled out of his thoughts by the creaking of the door to the rebuilt Seventh Heaven. That's right. They were going to keep the bodies here until the burial details could be worked out with Reeve, the new head of ShinRa and thus the new head of Neo-Midgar. It was merely a formality, though. The plans would be approved.

The others gave him a wide berth as he lay the fallen General down on the makeshift bed in one of the upstairs rooms. He lingered over the sight of Cloud, cold and dead, lying next to Sephiroth, no less imposing in his death. Something didn't seem right. He reached out and placed his ex-leader's hand in the hand of his ex-enemy's. There. They should remain in the way they were found.

He felt a coarse hand on his shoulder, though the owner was trying to keep his touch light, a mechanic's hand was known to be heavier than the normal one. Cid. Vincent sighed. He had lingered too long.

He withdrew and joined the others on the fringes of the room. His eyes fell on Cloud's face. He looked so damn peaceful. Was death always like this? A moment of brief pain, perhaps even enough to draw tears from the toughest men known to man, and then peace? Could he make it through that pain? Could he ever find peace?

Or was it that they had shed tears for some other reason?

"It doesn't seem right." Tifa's voice cut through his retrieve. "Vincent? Why did you put their hands back together like that? It just doesn't look right."

Yuffie gasped and Cid let loose a low growl. Nanaki shook his head in disbelief. Even Barrett seemed to stumble back in confusion. Vincent merely fixed his gaze on Tifa and waited for her to meet his eerie crimson eyes. She did.

"Or maybe it looks too right." He said smoothly and her eyes widened in shock. Yes, that was it. She thought it looked too right. She thought Cloud had loved her. That, if she waited a little longer, he would wander into her arms. "Leave it be, Tifa. They deserve whatever bit of comfort we can give them, even in death."

Everyone returned to looking at the bodies once more. What were they waiting for? Did they really think that Cloud was going to sit up and then proceed to berate them for being in his room while he was trying to take a nap? Was that what they wanted? Why couldn't they see that this was planned? This happened for a reason. Someone had taken pity on Cloud and pulled him out of his misery along with the man he'd loved. Why did everyone else have to be blind to that fact?

But regardless of the respect Vincent held for the fact that Cloud was never coming back, He couldn't help but think:

What are we going to do now?

_**What happens next?**_

Vincent shook his head and silently slipped out of the room. He didn't need to be there. None of them needed to be there. It wasn't like the two bodies were going to get up and walk away. They weren't plotting the downfall of mankind behind everyone's backs. They were just dead. It was natural. It happened. Maybe it even happened for no reason, like in this case. But that didn't change the fact that it happened. This time, they weren't going to be coming back.

The cloaked man's demons were screaming again. He couldn't decipher what they were saying exactly, but they were spitting mad at something, or someone. It was best that he leave. He could still lose control. He could still kill the others.

Never mind that the malice that was rising in his head didn't seem to be directed in an effort to break out for once. The demons were unpredictable. He left Neo-Midgar as quick as the wind. He returned to the spot of Cloud's apparent downfall.

The ex-Turk couldn't figure it out. Why had two healthy men, each with the enhancements of Mako, suddenly drop dead of their own accord out in the middle of nowhere? His eyes, also infused with the cursed substance that he couldn't live with, but couldn't live without any longer, scanned the area. Just as he thought. No signs of a struggle. Just old motorcycle tracks, fading slowly but surely into oblivion.

Two sets of footprints. One set coming from the direction of Neo-Midgar and ending next to the rusted sword that faced the crippled city. An area of smudging. Cloud had been sitting when Sephiroth walked up. Probably thinking like usual. Then the steps led closer and closer to the cliff. Cloud had been backing up, most likely out of surprise. Then there was the area of dust where he'd fallen. Apparently the mercenary had stumbled forward, towards the enemy before he'd fallen. In range of the Masamune, but there had been no wound and no blood on the slender sword. Cloud's own sword lay by the edge of the cliff, proving that he hadn't thought Sephiroth a threat. He would have never have let the weapon go if he'd thought otherwise.

The other set had come from the direction of the wilderness surrounding the fledgling city. It seemed as though Sephiroth had been traveling for a while, without the aid of a vehicle or any other mode of transportation. The footsteps wavered and seemed slightly pained. Then they cut off abruptly, ending in the smudged area where the man's body had been found.

No, it hadn't been a fight that took the lives of the greatest leaders ever born.

Vincent sat down where he stood. The demon's voices had reached a crescendo. Normally when this happened, he was trying to force them from the front of his mind. But now it seemed that they were trying to stop something else from coming in.

Great, he thought, just what I need. Another demon to contend with.

He closed his eyes and sunk deep in his mind, something he hadn't done in a long time for fear that while he wasn't exerting a conscious hold on his body one of the demons would take it. Somehow he knew that wasn't going to happen now.

_**I dare you to move**_

_**I dare you to move**_

_**I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor**_

_**I dare you to move**_

_**I dare you to move**_

_**Like today never happened**_

_**Today never happened before**_

"Cloud?" Vincent was aware that he hadn't said anything out loud and that he wasn't even really awake. If this was a dream, then let it come. The blonde had some questions to answer, even if he wasn't real.

"Hey, Vincent. I take it that no one's very happy about my death." Cloud seemed happier than the gunman had ever seen him before. Was this death? Utter happiness and contentment? Maybe Vincent had been going about things the wrong way.

"Not particularly. You could have said something." Vincent realized that he should be scared right now. He should be questioning his sanity. He was taking to a dead person for heaven's sake! Either he was dead himself or hallucinating. Neither explanation sounded like a good sign.

"But then one or more of you would have tried to stop me. I couldn't have that, now could I?" The gunman shrugged. Cloud continued. "Besides. There was nothing any of you could do. It was time and I'm glad it happened the way it did. You'll understand some day. There is nothing better than dying peacefully next to the one you love."

"I'll take your word for it."

Cloud laughed. "Hang in there, Vincent. You'll see what I mean, I promise. Love might be hiding right under your very nose."

"I hope you have something better to say because you're beginning to bore me." Vincent crossed his arms over his chest, taking a second to stop and wonder exactly how he was managing to do that seeing as he didn't seem to have a body.

Cloud's laughter tapered off into soft chuckles. "Same old Vincent."

He seemed to stare into space for second before remembering whatever it was he was supposed to be doing.

"Anyway." Cloud cleared his throat. "I've only been given a short amount of time to do this and I was only allowed to pick one of you. From what I've seen and heard, I picked you. Don't let me down. Oh, and it might not be a good idea to tell everyone you've started seeing dead people. It could cause you to bee seen in that same bad light they used to look at you in. Although, you could tell Cid. He'd believe you."

"I'm not even going to ask how it is you know which one will believe me or not. You're in the Lifestream aren't you?" Vincent asked.

"For awhile, yes, I'll be here until the rest of you join me and then we'll be moving on. You'll see when it's your turn. Just don't reject the proffered hand. You'll know what I mean when it's your turn." Vincent growled.

"Just get on with it."

"Right. Hold your chocobos. I'm getting there." Cloud held up a hand when he sensed that Vincent wanted to say something more on the subject. "I'm here to give you a challenge. You want to die, don't you? Don't even deny it because I can obviously delve into your mind, if I'm here right now that is."

"Yes. Death does seem like an appropriate punishment." Vincent mused. He hadn't really thought about it much until this point, but the blonde was right. Vincent wanted to die, no, he needed to die. Maybe then, he could be worthy of being forgiven.

"Thought you would say that." Cloud looked around as though he were trying to hear something only he could. "Seems as though your demonic friends have calmed down. Good. That means I can stay longer. The point here is that you can't die yet. None of you can. Something's coming to try and take over the Planet. Sephiroth and my deaths were all a part of the Planet's preparation for this new event. Seems that Jenova isn't as dead as we thought. If we'd stayed alive, there's no doubt about it. We wouldn't have been able to hold her back and you'd have the both of us to fight against. Hurry up and bury our bodies. That way they can decay and become a part of the Planet. Then maybe the Mako in our bodies can finally return to the Lifestream where it belongs."

"You didn't want to tell me just this."

"No. I didn't. But now our friends are wandering where you are. Open your eyes." Cloud seemed to sense Vincent's panic. "Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. You can still hear and talk to me in your mind. If you panic then the demons will get past the shield Aries, Zack, and Sephiroth are trying to maintain."

"Aries and Sephiroth! They're in the Lifestream as well?" Vincent asked in disbelief. Sure he had figured that Aries was somewhere in there, but he'd never actually stopped to really consider what that might mean. And Sephiroth? He didn't even know it was possible for regular people to be able to fuse with the Planet in such a way. Then he seemed to remember that Cloud had said a third name. "Zack?"

"Yes. He's my friend from a long time ago. You never met him. Just trust me, okay? You can trust both of them just as much as you trust Aries. Now hurry. Go to them." Cloud smiled sadly and waved as Vincent felt his spirit retreating. The gunman opened his eyes and sat bolt upright in the dirt.

"Was it just a dream?" He muttered to himself as he stood and dusted the thin layer of soil from his clothing.

'_No such luck. I'm still here. Hurry._'

Vincent hurried.

It didn't even occur to him that this wasn't normal. People didn't hear their dead friends in their heads everyday. But, when had Vincent ever really been normal? He heard voices every day. If he really wanted to say something about it, he'd have to say that having Cloud in there was much better than having four bloodthirsty demons to contend with.

'_As fascinating as your thoughts are, we're running out of time here. There are some things you need to tell the others._'

"You think I don't know that?" Vincent muttered to himself and blatantly ignored Cloud's good natured chuckle. Death really must be an intoxicating thing. The ex-Turk had rarely seen Cloud in such a good mood when he was alive.

'_It's more of who I'm with than anything else. You don't feel so lonely any more when you're surrounded by the people you've been missing for so long. Now, enough depressing thoughts. You've got a mission to complete._'

"Still a pain in the ass." Vincent whispered as he knocked on the door that led to the room where the rest of AVALANCHE, as well as the two dead bodies, were. Cid opened the door.

"Vince? That you?" The gruff man blinked as the light from the hallway fell into the darkened room.

"Cid. Get everyone and meet me in the livingroom. There's some things I need to say." Cid looked confused at first, and almost like he wanted to argue. Vincent stopped lowered his voice so that only the pilot could hear. "It's about Cloud. He's in the Lifestream and... Well, he's telling me that there's something he wants to say."

Cid thought about it for a second, but shrugged. "You've never lied before. Why would you start now? I'll get the others." He turned to go.

"Just don't tell them please. You know what they'd think." Cid nodded and shut the door quietly. Vincent made his way to the appointed room.

'_Gone soft, have you?_'

"No one asked you."

_**Welcome to the fallout**_

_**Welcome to resistance**_

_**The tension is here**_

_**The tension is here**_

_**Between who you are and who you could be**_

_**Between how it is and how it should be**_

"A turning point." Vincent's quiet voice seemed to echo around the room. No one moved or made much of a sound. Vincent never spoke much, but when he did, the others had learned that they couldn't afford not to listen. "This happened for a reason. Everything on this Planet is governed by the Lifestream. Something is going to happen. Jenova isn't dead."

"What!" Tifa yelled as she leapt to her feet. "You're trying to tell us that Jenova is still alive and well somewhere? Cloud's dead! There's no one left who has the power to defeat her!"

'_Tell her to shut up, Vincent. She doesn't get it._'

You think I don't know that, Vincent thought to himself. Aloud he said, "Would you rather have Cloud _and _Sephiroth wandering around possessed by Jenova? We could barely beat Sephiroth on his own. Cloud could barely beat Sephiroth on his own. How are we supposed to beat him when he's got Cloud on his team."

The room was silent for a minute as the weight of what Vincent was implying hit them full force. Cloud had been losing the battle in his mind the entire time. He could have gone either way.

"He... He held it in all the other times. We would have been here for him." Yuffie came forward timidly. "We could have stopped him, like we've done in the past."

"No." Vincent winced at his tone of voice. "We've never been the grounding factor for him. Why? Because we've never really stopped to ask him how he felt about things. We were in this for our own selfish reasons and it was a miracle that none of us left when it became clear that ShinRa wasn't our opposition any longer. Forgive me for asking this, but can any of you really say that you sat down with the man and asked him what was wrong when he'd go all silent on us? No one asked him to explain his cryptic comments and no one even seemed to mind when he'd handed over the black materia to Sephiroth. Just so long as he was healthy and fighting on your side, nothing he felt really mattered.

"That man was going through hell and no one stopped to console him. All we did was remind him that he had to kill someone he knew. Someone he loved. If that was supposed to raise someone's confidence then I'm a yellow spotted chocobo."

'_The chocobo might have been a bit much, Vincent, but a good speech none the less. Tell them to remain strong. And don't you forget either. You need to be the grounding force here. They are going to look to you. I can only give you so much, but, Vincent, you are their hope. Think of it as penance if you will. When the time comes, you'll be able to rest easier knowing that you made a difference._'

'_I can't do it, Cloud. They'll never listen to me and you know it. They think I'm going to snap one day and eat them all._'

'_Then hide behind Cid. He'd make a fine leader._'

'_I hope you know what you're doing._'

Silence on the other end. Vincent couldn't tell if that was supposed to be a vote of confidence or a sign of uncertainty. At least Cloud's presence hadn't left his mind or he would have thought that Cloud had abandoned him.

But there was one person who wasn't happy to hear that she hadn't made a difference. Vincent could sense that Tifa was fuming on the inside. Well, she had thought that she was the one Cloud was hanging around for. It must have hurt to know that he only lingered in this world because he was waiting for Sephiroth and his final peace.

"This doesn't sounds promising." Nanaki spoke up from his place on the floor. "But it also doesn't seem like there is anything we can do to change it. The Planet is more alive than it has ever been and it's all thanks to Cloud and his strength, mental and physical. It is time for us to start our own legends. This is the Planet's way of telling us that it is our turn to be the heroes. Cloud, unfortunately, should not have been on our side in the first place. It took great strain to keep him with us, and, yes, it was the fact that we had become friends to him that kept him for as long as it could. I think he would rather have died than know he became our adversary."

Vincent nodded and he could hear Cloud's confident approval from inside his head. He got to his feet swiftly and made for the exit. All eyes turned to him once again. "I have to go think things out." Was the gunman's only excuse as he slipped out of the room and away from his team mates.

_**Maybe redemption has stories to tell**_

_**Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell**_

_**Where can you run to escape from yourself?**_

_**Where you gonna go?**_

_**Where you gonna go?**_

_**Salvation is here**_

"Are you offering me redemption, Cloud?" Vincent had made his way back to his own room. He knew that no one would bother him while he was in there. No one who didn't matter that was. "Is that what the Planet wants? It wants for me to be forgiven within myself?"

'_Not in so many words, but that is one of the general themes, yes. You can be of no help to anyone if you're still wallowing in your past._'

"I wish it was as simple as you make it seem." Vincent sighed in a momentary show of weakness. "I can't just forget all the things that have happened. I get reminded every two seconds of all the things I've done wrong. I let pride get the best of me and I'm never going to forget that."

'_This isn't about you, or the pride that may or may not have been your downfall. This is about innocent people that need someone to protect them. I'm not going to be around to do it any longer. Sephiroth, while originally having good intentions, couldn't do it either. If redemption means leading a group of misfits into certain death in order to save the Planet, then, yes. This is your redemption, so stop bitching and get moving._'

Vincent was stunned. He had never heard the blonde take quite that tone before. But, then again, Vincent had never really pressed the matter of his guilt with, well, anyone before. And, even if he'd wanted to, he wouldn't have chosen Cloud. The mercenary had his own problems to deal with.

'_Not anymore I don't. Being dead nullifies a lot of previous problems one might have._'

"Yeah, it does, doesn't it." Vincent muttered to himself, the beginnings of an idea forming in his head, only to be shot down ten seconds later by an enraged Cloud.

'_You are NOT going to commit suicide. You have no idea, do you? You have no clue how important you are to the future, and not just the future of the Planet! I've been trying to tell you this entire time, wasting my strength and the strength of those I love to try and get through to you, but you just refuse to think that maybe someone else might be right about your stupid forgiveness. If the Planet wanted you to die for your 'sins' then you would be dead by now. You cannot beat destiny, no matter how hard you try. You've just got to accept that._

'_Honesty! What is it going to take to show you that we have all forgiven you? Lucrecia, Sephiroth, and even Aries. They've all forgiven your sorry ass. I don't see why you can't seem to be able to do it. Are you just going to keep traveling around the world, alone and miserable just so that you can rest easy for one night out of your life? I never stopped having the nightmares of my past. I, even now, still fear that I'm going to turn around and find that this is all a dream and that there's nothing left to live for. You can't escape your past, but you can accept that there was nothing you could do about it. There was no way for you to know just how sick and how far Hojo was willing to go in the name of his precious science._

'_So many people have been hurt by him. So many people have been killed, at the hands of my own love! You think that there weren't nights when I, or Sephiroth, didn't sit up and wonder how things could have been done differently? That I never thought about how it would have been if I'd just taken those damn books from Nibelhiem's library and burned them before he learned the truth? I lost the best friend I ever had because of that, and I brought about the demise of so many others because I thought he'd just been taking a harmless interest in something that shouldn't have made a difference. By doing that, I sentenced myself to five years of torture and pain, as well as doing the same to my friend, who, after escaping, thought he was going to have a better life. Then he was killed, because he was trying to protect me!_

'_No, you are not the only one with blood of the innocents on your hands._'

Vincent was stunned into silence. He'd had some general idea of Cloud's past, but he'd never known that there had been this much pain. The blond had never wanted to go into it much, and Vincent, knowing that some things were better kept private, had never pushed the matter. It seemed that they'd had a lot in common in some respects.

_**I dare you to move **_

_**I dare you to move **_

_**I dare you to lift yourself **_

_**Lift yourself up off the floor **_

_**I dare you to move **_

_**I dare you to move **_

_**Like today never happened **_

_**Today never happened **_

_**Today never happened **_

"I guess you really leave me no choice, then." Vincent sighed wearily. "I'll do it. I'll lead them through the future. I'll carry out the Planet's wishes, but you had better be right in the end, or I don't care where my soul ends up. I will find yours and tear you to shreds."

'_I'll be sure to keep an eye out._'

The sound of Cloud's sarcastic voice knocked Vincent out of his mind and into the present. "I guess you're going to be leaving for good then."

'_If it makes you feel better, think of this as some sort of internal revelation you came upon by yourself. No, even better, make sure that they forget about my death. It'll be easier for everyone that way. No standards to live up to and such. I was just a nameless cadet that was caught up in the crossfire between AVALANCHE and ShinRa. Sephiroth died on that day in Nibelhiem._'

"I see the wisdom in that. I'll try."

'_That's all anyone has ever asked for._'

_**Like today never happened before...**_


	3. Hero

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII affiliated characters. They are the legal property of SquarEnix (or SquareSoft as they used to be known as). Hero is sung by Chad Kroeger.

* * *

**_

I am so high, I can hear heaven.  
I am so high, I can hear heaven.  
Oh but heaven, no heaven don't hear me.

_**  
**_

It had been two years. Two agonizing, bloody, fruitless years, and sometimes Cid just had to stop and wonder about it all. How did things end up this way?

It wasn't like they were bad people. In fact, they were down right saints for putting up with everything they'd been forced to put up with. AVALANCHE had started out as a good idea, then it had grown into a vision. After that, it was a legend. Two and a half years down the road and it was in chaos. Now, two years after that, it wasn't even really a faction. More like three friends trying to keep it together while everything else was falling apart at the seams.

Things had turned to bordering on pathetic. Never, even when they had been at their very worst during the time Cloud had been their leader, had they resorted to sleeping in grungy alleyways and eating week-old, dried, instant soup someone had managed to find in a rusted trash bin on the outskirts of Midgar.

To top it off, they were eating week-old, dried, instant soup without the benefit of water, hot or otherwise.

And this was a good day.

And their numbers had dwindle down from the eight they had been originally, Aries and Cloud included, to the three they were now. Half of their old group was dead or missing. It was supremely disheartening.

Aries might have died a long time ago, north of four years if any of the remaining friends wished to count it, and Cloud had been gone for two now, but neither had truly been forgotten, regardless of all attempts to. Barret was also among the list of the dead now. He'd been killed four months ago while trying to protect Marlene from a monster out by Costa del Sol. Marlene had barely escaped with her life and was now in an orphanage in Midgar, the only safe city left on the entire Planet.

Tifa had gone MIA a full year ago. There were many theories surrounding her disappearance and the correlation to the exact day Cloud had passed on, but since no one had located a body, nothing could be confirmed or denied.

Yuffie, while still living, might as well have been dead for the fact that she wasn't able to help them any longer. She would always have her own honorary place among the remaining members, but she was no longer a true part of AVALANCHE. She had returned to Wutai after the death of Barret to help diffuse the siege that had been placed on her country. She was still there now, according to what little intelligence they could gather.

She had her own wars to fight.

So that left Nanaki, Vincent, and Cid to carry on fighting the good fight. Too bad it wasn't really much of a fight so much as a massacre.

Cid had done what he could, when he could. He listened to Vincent's advice and it seemed that everything the dark-haired man said could be counted on. Every suggestion the gunman had made in the past two years had turned out for the ultimate best. It still surprised him that Vincent hadn't usurped his tentative position as leader already. But even Vincent's well of ideas could run out. It was sheer will keeping them alive at this point.

Even though the pilot had lost his precious _Highwind_ a year and a half ago, he was still tinkering on things. Still building small modes of transportation, most of them being destroyed by monsters not too long after being created. Even after the death of Shera, he couldn't give up his one steadfast passion. It was the only thing that would never change about him. He loved to build things.

It had also been two years since Vincent's last mental breakdown, if that day could have really been called a breakdown. Cid could still remember opening the door leading out into the hallway at Seventh Heaven and seeing Vincent standing there with an urgent look on his face. He'd said that Cloud had told him there was something they had to know. The look he'd sent Cid on that day had followed the pilot through the tough years that had followed. Trust mixed in with a tinge of fear. Vincent trusted him and was afraid that Cid would think he'd gone off the deep end. Vincent actually _cared_ if he thought the gunman had gone insane.

Cid had trusted him and they never spoke of the incident again.

Was Cloud really in his head that day? Cid would never really know. All he knew was that not even two weeks after the funeral, new monsters began showing up, and then all Hell broke loose.

Another war had begun.

Jenova had found herself another vessel.

The guy she chose was no Sephiroth, that was for sure. He wasn't exactly physically beautiful, nor did he have any sort of tactical brilliance. In fact, he was just an average person, trying to make a living when he'd accidentally moved too close to a Mako reactor without knowing it. He didn't have the Mako concentration Jenova normally wished her vessels to have, but his mind had been weak enough for her to break in and dig roots. That's when things had gotten out of control.

No one had suspected the pitiful man who'd been thrown from his home when the reactor exploded. They'd helped him escape to Midgar along with all the other inhabitants of the small village after the disaster. They were the ones that let the snake into the lion's den. The man had brought the monsters to Midgar and took over the city from the inside.

The safest city on the Planet was also the new headquarters for Jenova's latest scheme to destroy the Planet.

It had been hard. So many people they knew and loved disappeared every day. Anyone living outside Midgar was subject to just up and vanishing at a moment's notice, never to be seen again. Anyone living inside Midgar could be forced to take up arms against the attackers of the city. The attackers being what was left of AVALANCHE.

In the beginning of the war, AVALANCHE was the shining beacon of hope once again. People flocked from near and far to join their ranks. Even the Turks had joined forces in an attempt to regain Midgar and destroy the vessel. One year down the road and it was safe to wander the farthest reaches of the Planet without fear. Half a year later and the Turks lay dead at the bottom of the North Crater. Two months after that and Jenova's reach had forced the people to either scatter or return to Midgar to become servants of the evil.

AVALANCHE had lost its luster and was now something to be laughed at, ridiculed and hated. They had failed and no one was going to let them forget it.

_**And they say that a hero can save us.  
I'm not gonna stand here and wait.  
I'll hold on to the wings of the eagles.  
Watch as we all fly away.  
**_

Cid sighed as he took his place around the fire. Nanaki looked up and shot a weary smile in the pilot's direction. Vincent was missing and that normally meant he'd had a great idea and was working out the details. Cid never worried when Vincent vanished. The gunman always came back in the end.

"Did you find anything better to eat?" Cid asked gruffly. Nanaki sighed and shook his head. There just wasn't any food left out here to find. "Can't fault you for trying."

"You're being awfully congenial today. Something happen?" Nanaki asked calmly. Cid was Cid and nothing would change, especially not his personality.

"Vincent's gone." Cid stated as though that should have been completely obvious. The gunman had become extremely punctual in the past two years, knowing that he would make everyone worry if he just went missing for a few days like he used to. You could practically set your watch by the guy. If he said that he was going to be at the campsite by the time the sun was straight above their heads, then he was going to be there, unless he'd been thinking that was.

And him thinking always led to AVALANCHE victories.

"I suppose he is." Nanaki scanned the small camp for any sign of the dark-haired man. "It's been some time since the last time he's done this. Maybe we do stand some sort of a chance. I can feel it. The Planet is trying to do something."

Cid grunted. He'd never understood the weird connection that Vincent and Nanaki seemed to have with the Planet, but that didn't really matter much. They were his friends and they'd been there for him when he'd lost Shera. Cid was a fiercely loyal man and that had just sealed the deal for him. Anything he might say to the contrary, he loved his friends, yes, even Yuffie.

"Pass the noodles. Our fucking hero's just going to have to find his own dinner."

_**Someone told me that love would all save us.  
But how can that be?  
Look what love gave us.  
A world full of killing, and blood-spilling, **_

It had been an entire day since Cid had seen Vincent. Nothing to worry about, though. The man knew not to leave the area or go too far away. If something had happened, there would have been gunshots to lead the other two to him. And besides, there hadn't been any signs of monsters in that area for months. Cid figured that Jenova had given up on searching for them, marking them as not much of a threat.

Nanaki had been quiet as well, even more so than usual. It seemed that he'd been thinking about some things as well. In fact, Cid was sure that he was the only one not thinking about something. But, he'd found that thinking about the future somehow ended in him thinking about the past and of all the people that weren't alive to think about a future any longer. It wasn't that he was sorry he was one of the only survivors out of the original groups that had opposed Jenova, but he couldn't help but feel sorry for all the casualties. And it never helped when he got to all the friends and loved ones he'd lost as well.

"Vincent is coming." Cid immediately went from his previous position hunched over the dying fire to sitting bolt upright in the direction of where Vincent had disappeared yesterday. Nanaki didn't move after his statement. He knew that Vincent would explain himself over time. That was just the way it had always been.

"Hey, Vin!" Cid waved as he caught sight of the dark figure headed towards them. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Thinking." Was the monotone answer as the reclusive gunman entered the ring of light from the fire. "Just thinking."

"About?" Cid asked as he bit down into the same noodles from yesterday, trying not to grimace from the lack of taste or the fact that noodles weren't supposed to _crunch_ like that.

"Our next move." Vincent said absentmindedly. There was a long pause as Nanaki and Cid sat staring at the gunman in an attempt to get him to continue his thought.

After a full minute of doing nothing, Cid couldn't take it any more. He opened his mouth to demand a full explanation. Vincent cut him off before he could even begin to form the first word.

"Love. What do you think it means, Highwind? Nanaki?" Vincent looked up from the vague area somewhere near the fire he'd been previously looking at and leveled his crimson gaze in Cid's general direction. "What does the word really mean?"

A moment's silence, and then:

"Nothing."

Nanaki looked up as he felt the surprised gazes of his friends fall on him. He shrugged and returned to staring in the direction of Midgar.

"Well, it's just a word, isn't it? The word alone doesn't mean a thing. It's the emotion behind it that is everything. You asked for what we thought the word meant, not the feeling, which shouldn't really have a specific word or definition."

"Precisely."

Now Cid was the one looking around at his friends as though they had each grown multiple heads. "What the fuck are you on about? Did you slip and hit your fucking head or something?"

"Not at all, Highwind. Not at all." Vincent lowered himself gracefully to the ground. "It is what it is. A word. And not all words have to mean something. 'Love' is merely a concept, fine in theory, but having consequences as well as perks when you implement it. Nothing alive can understand it or predict it. It can come and go as it pleases, making you feel comfortable around someone one day and wanting to punch them in the face the next. Love is what runs the entire Planet, whether we wish to admit it or not. Jenova does not understand the emotion behind the word love."

"Therefore, she will be utterly confused when faced by it." Nanaki finished softly. Cid scratched his head as he tried to understand what had just happened.

"So how the hell are we supposed to do whatever the fuck you just said we should do?" The mechanic asked. Knowing love existed was all fine and good, but trying to explain and understand how it was supposed to be used as a weapon was a whole different story all together.

"Simple." Vincent muttered. "It is simple. We go in and wing it."

"How the fuck did you get that out of our conversation!" Cid almost feel back off the rock he was perched on in surprise. If it was something as simple as winging it, then shouldn't the war be over by now? "Correct me if I'm wrong, but going in without a hint of a plan and expecting something to mysteriously tell us what to do while being gunned down by a fucking nutcase sounds like the stupidest fucking thing I've ever heard in my entire fucking life!"

"Think about it, Highwind." Cid feel silent immediately once Vincent started speaking. "I am not saying that going in without a plan is the most brilliant idea, but, then again, Jenova would expect us to come in, having a well-practiced, well-thought out plan. She would be searching for it. She would have covered every little angle we could possibly think of from exits to how many guards we'd be able to take out in the narrow corridors. The only thing she cannot count on, nor predict, is human emotion, and that just might be the weak link."

Vincent took a deep breath and continued on. "You know that I claimed to have heard Cloud in my head on the day he died." He looked pointedly in Cid's direction and continued on when the pilot nodded that he remembered. "And I did. I do not care if you think that I am crazy. I know you do not, though I do not understand why. I also do not care if you believe me or not, for I also know that you do. Cloud is very much in the Lifestream and very much still a part of this world."

"So you saw him again?" Nanaki asked slowly. Vincent nodded.

"Yes. I saw him and he had something very interesting to say to me." Vincent smirked. "Jenova is a being born of greed. One man's greed turned into two, then it grew even more to encompass every little greedy thought on the face of the Planet. And what is greed, but a cold, calculated desire for more that what you have? That is how she continues to beat us at our own games, even though she no longer possesses a strong body such as Sephiroth or Cloud. Her reasoning does not leave room for human emotions such as love. She can't possibly plan for them if she doesn't know to what lengths a human would go for love.

"Take Sephiroth and Cloud for example. Cloud told me that Jenova was trying to break into his mind at the time of his death, bombarding him with the sensory images of his past. But she did not think that either of them would rather give up their lives than being thrown into the background and apart from each other again. It was their love that gave them the choice: Die now and be with the one you love, have always loved, or go on living, knowing that you will never see the man you fell in love with ever again. Knowing that you had one chance to end all your pain and suffering and be reunited with those you have always cared about.

"Same thing goes with the original ShinRa. They used to have a good goal. I should know. I worked for them in hopes that I could do something to see that goal reached. Now, I am not saying that it was something I should have done, and I regret some of the things I had to do while I was in the organization, but, if given another chance, even knowing how things would end up for me, I would choose that path again. They just wanted a better world for the Planet's people to live in.

"It was greed that warped them past the point of no return."

_**That world never came.**_

"Are you suggesting that we should just fucking go in there and let our fucking emotions do whatever the fuck they want to do in hopes that someone will do something that Jenova wouldn't expect and we'd be able to land a mortal fucking blow for once?" Cid asked once Vincent was done explaining.

"That would be the general idea, yes." Vincent answered.

"But that doesn't fucking explain what love has to fucking do with anything."

"There is more than one level of love, Highwind. Do you think that I do not love you, or that I did not love Cloud or Aries while they were alive? Friend's love each other in their own way. You certainly should be able to see that. How many times have you put yourself in between danger and someone you claimed as a friend so they would not perish?"

Silence followed this revelation.

"So we do have a fucking chance."

_**And they say that a hero can save us.**_

__

I'm not gonna stand here and wait.

I'll hold on to the wings of the eagles.

Watch as we all fly away.

Gun shots rang out and there was a mighty roar from time to time. Curse words filled the air as the Venus Gospel sliced through empty spaces, and sometimes, if the enemy was close enough, flesh and bone. The Death Penalty sounded each shot and echoed throughout the enormous foyer, occasionally clanging off the metal armor of some of the SOLDIERS. The air crackled with electricity and chilled and heated as materia was activated and spells were cast. Shouts of pain began and then died away as quickly implemented Cure spells found their mark.

It was AVALANCHE's last stand.

They had snuck their way into Midgar through some of the back roads, going silently, being forced to duck into trustworthy store or bars as some of the newly formed ranks of SOLDIER wandered by making their rounds. The people of Midgar, though claiming to hate the faction, were still glad to see that the fighting spirit hadn't dimmed with time.

The first form of opposition was a rather weak mutated monster outside the front gate of the newly rebuilt ShinRa headquarters. It seemed that, without a more powerful body, Jenova was limited to the amount of truly strong monsters she was able to create.

After dispatching the monster, the group continued into the foyer, where they were now. It seemed that the monster's death cries had been heard inside the fortress and all the active SOLDIERS, and even some of the off-duty ones that happened to be in the building, came rushing to stop the intrusion. About twenty now lay dead, even more wounded from one of the many shots or from being too slow to dodge Cid's whirling spear. Obviously, without Hojo, Jenova hadn't found the time to reinstate the Mako program into the ranks of her guards. Another batch fell as a well-aimed Lighting3 spell hit them right in the center of their group.

As the spell weakened and disappeared, a nervous hush came over all gathered. Jenova had arrived and she was spitting mad.

_**And they say that a hero can save us.**_

_**I'm not gonna stand here and wait.**_

_**I'll hold on to the wings of the eagles.**_

_**Watch as we all fly away.**_

The three friends watched quietly as the man Jenova had chosen calmly walked down the steps, taking his dear, old time to come face to face with the heros. It was a move made deliberately to make them angry. It almost worked.

For a minute, Cid's clear blue eyes met the dull brown ones of Jenova's host. A small emotion flashed in the eyes of the enemy. Some semblance of the man he'd used to be was still there under the guise Jenova had created. Human emotion had lived on and allowed for the victim's mind to be kept intact.

Which meant that there was possibly some basis for Vincent's theory of Jenova not understanding the power of human emotions. If she was worried about them getting in her way, she would have already broken the man's spirit and crushed every last bit of his will to think for himself. It wasn't like she couldn't do it. Cid had witnessed first hand how Jenova could make even someone as strong as Cloud or Sephiroth doubt everything they ever knew in less than two seconds.

A loud blast pierced Cid's eardrums with a second one following not even a second later and then he felt his body being pulled downwards by something heavy. Something breathing.

The pilot groaned as he attempted to sit up and push off the weight, which wasn't really as heavy as he'd originally thought. Living off worse than table scraps for the past seven months would do that to a person. He looked into the glazed crimson eyes of Vincent Valentine.

"Cid?" The mechanic almost gasped, if he'd hadn't had the wind knocked out of him from being pushed to the ground that was. Vincent had used his real name. That occurrence was as rare as a Golden chocobo. "You're not hurt?"

Cid nodded, not quite sure what had just happened. There was the sound of the gunman's sharp intake of air and then Vincent gave a weak push against the ground and Cid was free to sit. He bolted upright and was about to spring to his feet to survey what had just happened when he noticed that something wasn't quite right.

Vincent wasn't getting up.

The pilot changed the direction of body from a rising position to a falling one and landed hard on his knees, not even seeming to mind the dull throbbing that began as an effect of his hard reacquaintance with the ground. Vincent didn't even flinch.

A sort of mind numbing curtain fell over Cid. No. It couldn't be true. There was no one left on the Planet stronger than Vincent. There was nothing on the Planet that could kill him in one shot. Nothing.

But he was... dead...

It sounded so final. True, Cid had been faced with the death of those he'd known since the very beginning of his relationship with the terrorist group that was out to change the world, but this was different. This was _Vincent._

The same person that everyone had been afraid of in beginning. The so-called vampire. The man who'd stood in the shadows, knowing that he was being feared. Knowing that few, if any, of his comrades truly trusted him. Having come from a past where pain took center stage and anything the Turk could ever want was taken away, brutally and without remorse from his tormentor. The same man who'd lost his first love, his right arm, his sanity, and most of his humanity. The same man who'd always thought that he was going to be devoured from the inside out, not killed in some cold, impersonal foyer in the heart of the company he'd grown to hate.

It just wasn't right.

Cid hadn't even known until that very moment how much Vincent had really meant to him. How much he'd always wished that the gunman would open up to him and share everything with him. How much he wanted to just be with the other man, maybe even forever.

And now that chance had been taken away from him.

That made Cid angrier than he'd ever been before.

He was vaguely aware of shouts and roars in the background. At the moment he was more focused on Jenova, bleeding and clutching her missing arm in the corner of the room. Tears were falling down the cheeks of the man she was possessing and Cid could see the look of terror on his face. Jenova was retreating, but Cid wasn't going to allow her to do it this time. If Jenova was allowed to retreat then she would meld back into the Lifestream and find another vessel. No, it was going to end here.

Cid acted quickly.

He launched his body in the air, ignoring the groups of SOLDIERS rushing to stop him. Nanaki lay curled in a corner, also not moving. The fight was coming to a close.

The fate of the last stand had fallen into the hands of the simple pilot from Rocket Town.

Shots rang out and Cid felt a bullet pierce his side, he landed, catlike, on his feet and leapt once more. He was closing in.

His spear whistled through the air as it flew in a downwards arc towards it's target. Jenova was being held back by some unknown force in the Lifestream. She wasn't able to complete the bond! His chance was here!

As he felt the sharp tip of his weapon jam under the rib cage of his adversary, he became aware of something else. Electricity was forming between them. Jenova had an ace up her sleeve. She was dying, he knew that now, but she was determined not to go down alone. As Cid flew back through the air, tendrils of the electric power of a full force Lightening3 spell traveled through his veins, burning nerves and jolting his heart to a dangerous rhythm, pumping the blood through the tears in the vessels, causing painful hemorrhages to spring up in various places.

He landed in a crumpled heap right next to Vincent's body, skidding a bit in the pool of blood that had gathered there. His vision began to grow hazy and he could barely feel the trickle of his own blood that began seeping out of his nose.

But he'd done it. No, _they'd_ done it. She wasn't going to be coming back in this lifetime or the next. The Planet had been rid of Jenvoa's poison for good this time, and all it had taken was a sacrifice from a mysterious loner.

Cid winced in pain as he arched his back and managed to roll over so that he was facing the dead body of the man he'd never known he loved.

Vincent had given his life for the mechanic, and, as they say, actions speak louder than words. Cid gripped the fabric of the gunman's cloak and held on tight. It didn't occur to him that it might be too little too late. Spirits never fade and he knew that somewhere, Vincent was seeing everything.

If he was accepting what he was seeing was a entirely different matter.

_**Now that the world isn't ending, it's love that I'm sending to you.**_

_**It isn't the love of a hero, that's why I fear it won't do.**_

Light.

There was so much light in this place. Cid was blinded by its intensity, its warmth, its... perfectness.

He'd never been one for feeling as though he belonged, but here it was, this undeniable sense that he was exactly where he was meant to be from the beginning. He was finally home after all those years of searching.

He felt a presence behind him. He turned around to find himself face to face with all his friends.

Cloud was there, smiling with his arm wrapped around the waist of an equally happy Sephiroth. Aries was there as well, holding hands with some man he did not know, but it was obviously someone special to her for he had never seen her smile in such complete happiness while she'd been on the earth. Yuffie was there, though he could not fathom how she had died. Nanaki was standing next to her, grinning from ear to ear even as he swayed from side to side in order to avoid the ninja's enthusiastic waves and bouncing. Barret was standing off to the side with Tifa, both looking content even though Cid could tell that Tifa was unhappy about something. The only one missing was Vincent.

Cloud's grin seemed to grow wider. "Don't be so certain." He nodded his head in the direction Cid had been facing previously. Cid spun around.

And there he was.

_**And they're watching us (Watching us)  
They're watching us (watching us) as we all fly away.  
And they're watching us (Watching us)  
They're watching us (watching us) as we all fly away.  
And they're watching us (Watching us)  
They're watching us (watching us) **_

"Vincent?" Cid asked before he could even think. Vincent's eyes were twinkle with some half hidden emotion.

"No nickname this time?" Was that sarcasm? Did the great and mighty I-like-to-pout-24/7 actually crack a joke? Maybe Cid was dreaming. He wasn't dead, just asleep. Taking a nap. When he woke up it would be back to trying to find the next meal and plotting the course of action in order to save thousands of people from needless deaths.

But no, it was too weird to just be a dream. Vincent was smiling so calmly. If it was a dream, then Cid didn't want to wake up. Vincent deserved some kind of comfort, even if it might not be real.

"Cid..."

His hand. Vincent was offering him his hand. It was then that Cid knew for certain. It was no dream. It was reality. Life after death, and it was perfect.

He couldn't stop the smile that broke out over his features as he reached out and grasped the hand of his one and only love's for the first time.

They were all home.

_**As we all fly away...**_


	4. Listen to Your Heart

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII and affiliated characters. I do not own the song Listen to Your Heart preformed by DHT. The world that is now the backdrop for this tale is created by me for the purposes of this fiction. It is not Earth.

* * *

_**

**_I know there's something in the wake of your smile  
I get a notion from the look in your eyes, yeah  
_**

Sephiroth had noticed that he was being watched lately. It was like there was someone following his every move. Which wasn't all that odd, he was a very handsome man after all, but this was different. He was being stalked, he just knew it.

It also didn't help that he'd been noticing something wasn't quite... right... with one of his friends.

Now, he wasn't claiming to really know much about any of his friends, nor did he particularly care how they were feeling or what they were thinking. The only reason he could really call them friends was because they adamantly refused to leave him alone. And they were the only people he could semi-tolerate.

But did he know them well enough to be able to tell if something was off?

Hell yes.

Especially if one of their personalities did a complete 180 from bouncing around as though he were on some sort of drug to sulking in a corner and sending creepy looks in Sephiroth's general direction. Not creepy like he wished death upon the man, but like he wanted to throw him down and rape him until he couldn't go any more.

Which was really strange considering the fact that the person watching him only came up to about his shoulder and didn't look like he could knock over an empty soda can, much less a muscular teen going on north of six feet.

But Sephiroth was never one to underestimate those smaller than him. In fact, he had this weird nightmare from time to time where a small guy, who ironically looked almost exactly like the guy who was stalking him, came rushing at him with a big ass sword and then... Then there was a lot of pain. Sephiroth could draw his own conclusions from there.

So now here he was, watching Cloud watch him, wondering what the hell had happened to the teen to force this abrupt change. Or how the hell he could fix it and get on with his life without having an unwanted dick shoved up his ass. That dream was a traumatizing thing.

Cloud sent him a nervous smile and Sephiroth turned away, barely catching the look of longing that quickly followed the disappearance of his smile. He had to repress a shiver. It wasn't like he was gay or anything.

Just because he had this odd fetish for leather and his hair went to well past his knees as well as being completely well cared for people thought he was a flaming gay! It wasn't his fault that he had naturally thin eyebrows and a fine featured face. Anyone could have creamy skin and a perfect complexion. Just because he was bordering on beautiful didn't mean that he swung that way.

"Yo, Seph!"

And then there was Zack. Sephiroth had to repress another shudder. The one friend he was certain he could do without. Zack had to be the most annoying person on the face of the planet and he'd stick to you like a leech if you even showed him the merest hint of kindness, even though you might show him utter contempt for the rest of your lives. But he was a funny idiot that Sephiroth would never admit to actually laughing at.

At the moment , however, he was just another irritating person to add to Sephiroth's already aggravating day.

"What do you want, Charon?" Sephiroth muttered as he leaned against his hoverbike. He'd been waiting at the front of the school for ten minutes in hopes that his friends would appear sometime before he graduated. "I thought you had to go to work today."

"I was supposed to, but when I called them to make up some excuse as to why I couldn't go, they told me that everyone was getting a day off anyway because they were taking care of the mutant rat problem." Zack shuddered. "Finally."

"So there's no chance in the immediate future of you being bitten and dying a pain filled death after having the bite mark swell up to three times the size of your head?" Zack shook his head. "Oh... Damn it."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you wanted me to suffer and then die in excruciating pain." Sephiroth coughed and looked around nervously, making a point of avoiding looking in the corner Cloud was sulking in.

"In some ways... Yes."

"I love you, too buddy." Zack muttered and Sephiroth shot a look in Cloud's direction.

"Please don't say that. Someone might get ideas." Zack leaned a little to the left so his both his friends were now in view.

"Oh. So he's still doing that, then?" Sephiroth looked at Zack as though the other teen had grown a second head and then proceeded to name it Steve. "Okay. Bad question. Have you attempted to talk to him? You know, explain that you are never going to hop the fence and that all this staring at you is officially creeping people out. People being me of course."

Another incredulous look. "Okay. So maybe you haven't. What? Afraid to be alone with him? The kid couldn't pin that hyperactive twig of a girl from third period against a wall if she was missing an arm and a leg. What do you think he's going to do to you? The blitzball(1) coach still hasn't recovered from when you tackled him to the floor for attempting to blackmail you onto the team. And he was the star player on his professional team for twenty years and still hasn't lost his musculature."

"Only you would use a word such as musculature in every day conversation." Sephiroth grumbled more to himself than to Zack. What was he supposed to do? Explain that he was afraid of a kid three times smaller and weaker than him just because of a succession of dreams where he was constantly murdered by someone looking oddly similar? That would be a hoot. For Zack of course. Sephiroth would never be able to live it down and he was certain that the story would be spread around the school by that time tomorrow.

Meaning he was going to be accompanied on his little talk or Zack was the one in danger of losing a limb.

**_You've built a love but that love falls apart  
Your little piece of heaven turns to dark_**

Cloud was tired, cold, and slightly annoyed at this turn of events. Was it just him, or was fate normally against him when it came to the important things?

Up until a week ago, he'd thought he was just a normal teenager. He got up every morning, got on his hoverbike, and went to school. He wasn't brilliant, but he wasn't hopeless. He had his friends, some of them more popular than others, and he had a relatively nice life in a two story three bedroom with his parents and younger brother.

So what had happened that changed his view on normalcy?

A dream, of course.

He'd gone to bed one night after a party feeling elated. He'd met this great woman named Tifa and it seemed like she was really getting into him. She'd even given him her number. His two best friends had appeared thrilled for the blonde's good fortune and Zack had promised to help him pick out the perfect place for a first date the next day. Too bad that there really was no need for a date after all.

As he was drifting off to sleep he couldn't seem to forget the face of another woman that had been at the party.

Her gentle green eyes had seem to pierce into his very soul and her quite voice had held the promise of something intangible at the time. He could vaguely recall her cryptic comments and these were the last things he heard before drifting off into the dream that would change his current life.

"So you think you like her, huh?"

"Yeah. What's it to you? She's pretty, funny, tough enough to keep up with our biker group(2). What more can I ask for?"

"There are many people who fit that definition in your life. Maybe its time for you to find that old constant. The one thing that has remained the same in the past, and here as well."

"Lady. You're nice and all, but I have no idea what you're talking about. Hell, I don't even know your name, nor do you know mine and..."

"Aries. And you are Cloud. Don't look so scared. Everything will start to make sense, beginning tonight..."

Then everything faded to black and Cloud felt truly alone for the first time in his life.

A familiar voice filtered in through the darkness. It was Zack, one of his closest friends. He attempted to call out for his friend, ask him what was going on and how he could make it stop, but no sound had come out.

Then the real dream began.

"Hey, you? What are you doing all the way out here on a night like this? Shouldn't you be inside, asleep?" Cloud watched bewildered as Zack's smiling face swam into his line of vision. Now he could see that the darkness was just nighttime, but it wasn't nighttime like he'd ever seen it. Where were the neon signs and tall buildings the would signal him being in the city? And why did he have a gun in his hands? He'd never shot a weapon in his entire life.

"Guard duty. I fell behind in an exercise. Well, more so than everyone else at least." Wait! He hadn't wanted to say that! Cloud was looking for something more along the lines of 'What the hell is going on around here?' than whatever that was supposed to mean. But he could recognize his own voice, and that was it.

Zack's familiar chuckle filled the night air. "I can sympathize with ya. Had my share of guard duty when I was a cadet. Well, probably more than my share if I really want to be truthful. What's your name, kid?"

"Strife, Sir. Cloud Strife. Class B, Year Two, 3rd Barracks under Commander Jisco." What the hell? Cloud didn't even have a clue what he was talking about and _he_ was the one talking! Barracks? Commander? It sounded like he was in some sort of military thing.

"Name's Zachary Charon, but everyone just calls me Zack. I can't stand formalities." The Inner Cloud just rolled his proverbial eyes while the Outer one's eyes widened. "Oh, please don't fawn over me. I hate it when people do that. I don't need the constant reassurances from cadets that I'm awesome. I've got higher ups to do that for my ego. Though, if you ask certain people, they'd tell you that my ego didn't need stroked..."

Both Cloud's seemed to drift off as Zack's speech continued. Not everything could change and it seemed like this dream Zack was no less conceited than the one Cloud already knew. He closed his eyes and prayed that when he opened them he would be in his room.

He was outside on some sort of balcony, looking out over a city he'd never seen before, but that felt oddly familiar. And it was light out. So much for waking up.

"Hey, Spike?" Zack again. Was it just Cloud, or did the guy seem to be following him around in his dreams now? "What are you doing all the way out here? I thought you were supposed to be in the city on a date right now."

"So you'd have time alone to sulk? I don't think so." Inner Cloud almost recoiled at the bitter tone his voice had taken.

"He cancelled?"

"He cancelled."

"Don't worry, Spike. He loves you. He's just a very busy man. I'm sure that he wouldn't have cancelled if it wasn't something important." Cloud wasn't focusing much on what Zack was saying after he heard that words 'He loves you.' And the scary thing was that Outer Cloud didn't seem to have a problem with the thought that he was loved by a guy. In fact, it seemed like Outer Cloud loved this mysterious man right back.

"I know, I know. It just doesn't feel like it some times. Kind of like, ShinRa comes before me. Like I don't even make his top five on the list of things he really loves." Outer Cloud sighed while Inner Cloud tried to calm himself down. He'd almost hyperventilated when he found that it actually was _him_ that was feeling love for another man. It was an odd feeling to hyperventilate when you weren't in control of your own body. Cloud didn't think he wanted to try it ever again.

"You use the word 'like' a lot when you're upset." Zack pointed out and both Clouds couldn't resist sending a high level glare in his direction. Zack held up his hands in defense. "Hey. It was a friendly observation."

"I think we have different definitions of 'friendly'." Outer Cloud sighed and dropped to his knees, resting his chin on his folded arms as he stared out over the railing at the sun setting over the mysterious city.

_Midgar._

The word popped into Cloud's head and stuck. In his confusion he just seemed to know. _This is the name of the city I've never seen before. But... I have seen it. I've...**lived **here before. I don't know how, but I just **have**..._

"Hey, Cloud?" Zack moved to stand next to his friend and Inner Cloud ceased panicking about recognizing a city he'd never seen before and paid attention. He'd never heard Zack take on quite this tone of voice. If he didn't know better, he'd say that Zack was trying to be... _serious_.

"Yeah?"

"Do you believe in heaven on Earth?"

"Sometimes."

"Like when you're with him?"

"Yeah."

"The way I have it figured is that we all have a little piece of heaven that we carry around inside of us, just waiting for the moment when we meet that special someone and they respond in kind. When that happens, our heaven just kind of lights up on it's own and we feel as though we never want to leave. We never want to be alone again and we get confused when one or more things about the person changes. That's when your heaven dims and you begin to doubt it ever existed in the first place. Maybe you just need him to bring you back the fire to light the torch once more."

"Maybe... So, when the light goes out completely?"

"Then he doesn't love you anymore, but that's not going to happen. I have never seen him more in love with anyone and I've known him since we were ten."

"Thanks, Zack. I guess you can be useful at times."

"Hey!"

The scene faded and Cloud found that he was alone. A light chuckle resonated from behind him. So maybe he wasn't as alone as he thought.

"Zack was right on that day, you know." The girl from the party materialized in front of him. Cloud gasped. It was, what did she say her name was?... Aries. "Your heaven had just dimmed a bit. A couple of days later and things were back to normal. The fire never truly went out, but now... He doesn't remember you. He doesn't remember how much you meant to him, and the same can be said for you."

"So you're saying that my light has gone out?" Aries nodded solemnly. "What is going on around here? I don't understand! Why do I know that city? Why, why, why?"

"It's a memory. A memory of the place you came from. A memory of the Planet you saved, as seen through your own eyes. Untainted, untouched, just as you saw and felt and experienced back then. Just the way you left it, locked deep in your mind by the Lifestream. I just reopened the doors." Her voice was fading and he felt as though he were falling...

"Wait! Aries! Who is it? Who is it that I love?"

"You'll just have to find out on you own."

**_Listen to your heart  
When he's calling for you  
Listen to your heart  
There's nothing else you can do  
I don't know where you're going  
And I don't know why  
But listen to your heart  
Before you tell him goodbye  
_**

When Cloud had opened his eyes he found himself lying on the bottom of a rusted out pickup truck. Dust was flying everywhere and he couldn't suppress a slight sneeze. His head hurt like hell and he wished he knew where he was and why his body felt as though someone had taken a sledgehammer to it repeatedly and without mercy. He also wanted to know why the sun had to be so god damned bright.

He sat up as a fit of coughs racked his body. There was a strong hand being placed on his back, patting him softly as he coughed up dust and an odd greenish material. He stared in horror and shuddered as he wiped the substance off on a nearby oil soaked towel.

"I thought you were done coughing up that shit." Zack yet again. But it seemed as though his past self was relieved to see the obnoxious man. "You probably still got some in your lungs. Damn doctor probably put some in there on purpose just to see what would happen."

"What happened and why do I feel like I've got a hangover from hell?" For once it seemed like both Clouds wanted to know the same thing. "And why the hell are we in a truck that smells like five hundred sheep have run through here and each left a fat, juicy shit behind to commemorate their visit."

"Probably because we are in a truck that was used at one point to carry livestock. We're just lucky this man had already dropped off his load of pigs when I managed to get him to notice us." Zack sighed. "And you feel like shit because you been floating in a tube of Mako for five years and probably pumped full of more drugs than a druggie at the end of his life."

"That's nice. How come I'm not dead?" Zack laughed.

"Only you would still be able to maintain your sarcasm at this point." His expression became grim. "You seriously don't remember."

"I know there was a fire, and someone was laughing evilly in the background. Flashes of silver and an almighty pain in my stomach. Please tell me I wasn't impaled." Cloud's hand reached down to make sure there were no lasting holes in his abdomen.

"Okay. I won't tell you." Cloud must have sent him a 'look' because Zack hurried up to explain. "The wound's been gone for five years now, Cloud. There's nothing left. Not even a scar. I have to give that man some credit. We do heal faster than ever before, but... Are you sure you don't remember who stabbed you? Or who set the fire? Or any of it? Not even the escape?"

"No. I remember that part. You practically carried me out of the haunted house. But before it... Almost nothing. I do remember that grin on the maniac's face as he hooked a tube of something to my IV, but I couldn't identify the substance, nor do I think I wanted to. I remember drifting off and then waking up with your ugly mug in my face telling me that we had to get a move on before we were caught." Zack's face took on a pained look.

"I don't want to have to remind you of this, Spike. I really don't, but I need you to remember all of it." The dark haired man looked out over the rim on the truck bed at the flat land they were traveling over. Cloud knew that he was avoiding looking at him. "He went crazy, set the entire place on fire, knocked me out, stabbed you and then was... well..."

"Well what?" Outer Cloud was beginning to panic. Yes, there had been someone else in the fire with them. The person who'd stabbed him. He knew this person. Why couldn't he remember who it was? And why did he feel like his life was ending? Why did he want to cry?

"He didn't make it."

Gunshots filled the air. The truck screeched to a stop and the farmer jumped out, pointing the barrel of his shotgun in their direction. Instinct took over and both men leapt out of the truck bed and scrambled for cover. Zack pointed to the line of trees nearby that could only mean a forest. The older man hitched his weapon higher up on his back.

"On the count of three we go for it. Don't look back, just run. We meet in the forest." Cloud nodded, fighting down his own panic as a bomb exploded two feet from them. "THREE!"

Cloud took off, closing his eyes as he broke through the wall of dirt and debris from the bomb. He tripped once, rolled, and exploded to his feet as a hail of bullets slammed into the bit of ground he'd just vacated. He heard the grenade before it landed and great weight slammed into him as fragments flew. Zack landed on top of him as they both crashed to the ground, both getting up almost immediately, not bothering to look at wounds until they were safely under the cover of the forest.

Here they rested against two separate trees as they surveyed their wounds. Cloud had managed to receive a shallow cut running from just above his elbow down to his wrist, and he figured that he had a sprained ankle, but those weren't too bad. He could feel them both healing and knew that he would be wound free in a few minutes. He looked over at Zack and gasped.

"That bad, huh?" Zack tried to say more, but was stopped as he coughed up the blood in his lungs. "I don't think Mako's gonna heal this one, kid."

"Zack!" Cloud crawled to his superior's side. The elder held up his hand and Cloud paused, not sure what he could do to help. He had no potions and all his materia had been taken from him a long time ago. Zack's stomach gushed blood and there was a thin trickle leading down from his hairline, dripping to the ground from his chin.

"Don't worry about me." He winced as he reached up and unhooked his sheath. He leaned forward as the Buster sword dropped to the ground with a dull thud. "Take it. You'll be able to use it now." More coughing. "He'd be proud of you. He'd want you to go out there and live, so who am I to stop you? I just hope my little, old sword can help you in the future." His breathing slowed, and then stopped all together. Cloud felt his heart breaking.

"ZACK!"

**_Sometimes you wonder if this fight is worthwhile  
The precious moments are all lost in the tide, yeah  
They're swept away and nothing is what is seems  
The feeling of belonging to your dreams_**

"There was nothing you could do, and you knew it." Aries. "So you took his sword, covered his body, and left before you could get captured yourself. You wandered around for a while, not knowing what to do or where to go, or even who you were after some time. You became a mercenary, took on Zack's identity, and were hired by a rebel faction that was going against ShinRa. You met an old friend, Tifa, and many new ones."

"And Sephiroth?"

Aries smiled and clapped her hands softly. "So you remembered! Good. He was still alive, miraculously, but he was changed. The Jenova project, implemented by Hojo, had been a success in both of you, but she had found him in his moment of weakness, while his body was immersed in the Lifestream itself. He didn't stand a chance. She broke into his mind and made him her puppet."

"And I killed him." Cloud finished for her. "Twice as a matter of fact. And then you saved us. You brought us both into the Lifestream where we were set with the task of watching our friends and protecting them as they tried to defeat her once more. We won that battle and then the Lifestream sensed trouble on another Planet, in another time, and we were sent, not knowing what we were facing or why we were chosen. And he doesn't remember."

Aries smiled sweetly. "But you're going to change that."

"You'd better believe it."

_Sephiroth._

Sephiroth, who was now sending glares in his direction when he thought no one was watching. Cloud was just about to give up hope. What was it that Zack had said? Oh yeah. When heaven goes out it's damn near impossible to reignite.

What a promising thought.

Not.

And now the ex-General was coming in his direction, murder in his eyes. Joy. Zack seemed to be following, mildly confused. Double Joy. He was going to be murdered by his lost love while being held by his best friend. Who said Mondays were bad days?

"Strife, I would like to inform you that your presence is no longer required in our gang. You may continue to park with us for a week so you can locate another space that is to your liking. I do not care who you see outside school, but if you interfere in any of our issues from this point onwards, I will be forced to take action. Any problems that have arisen for you because of your membership will now be solely your problems and no one will help you with them. Do you understand?" Cloud searched Sephiroth's face for any sign of love, minute though it may be, but found nothing. He shrugged. It would be best for him if he wasn't constantly reminded of the things he could no longer have.

It was time to give up.

"I get it. I'll be out of your way in a few days." Cloud turned to go but Zack reached out and held him in place. "Was there something else?"

"I just wanted to remind you that we're still hanging out together tomorrow." Zack said and released his grip on his friend. Cloud nodded and trudged towards his bike, lethargically swinging his leg over the seat and not bothering to slip his helmet on before activating the machine and rising one foot off the ground, punching the gas a little harder than necessary, forcing the bike to make a loud rumbling noise as he shot off and disappeared at the next intersection.

"I think you just broke his heart." Zack commented as he stared in the direction his friend had sped off in.

"It's good for him."

**_Listen to your heart  
When he's calling for you  
Listen to your heart  
There's nothing else you can do  
I don't know where you're going  
And I don't know why  
But listen to your heart  
Before you tell him goodbye_**

Sephiroth shuffled into his favorite café after he'd managed to ditch Zack with the transparent excuse of going to do his homework. Perhaps it wasn't as easy to get rid of the blonde as he'd originally thought. Now the other boy was circling around in the older teen's head, crying as he look up at him and begged to be listened to.

He slumped down into his favorite seat at the counter and waited patiently as the cashier rang up a person who was just about to leave. He gave a slight wave as he realized the teen was watching him out of the corner of his eye. The cash register rung and the cashier sent his customer out with a smile and a wave. The second the door closed, the smile dropped and his face fell into a more neutral position. "Hey, Vincent."

"Hello, Sephiroth. Bad day, I am assuming." Vincent's clipped speech and deep voice, void of any and all emotions, was said to grate on the nerves of his peers as well as his teachers, but Sephiroth had always found that it carried a sort of soothing quality if one would just gaze past the stifling, polite barriers.

"You assume correctly." He ran a hand through his bangs. "Do you have a moment to spare for an old friend with a new dilemma?(3)"

Vincent shrugged and pulled up a stool behind the counter resting his elbows inches from Sephiroth's. He leaned in closer so their privacy had no chance of being invaded. "You are the fifth customer all day. If I can convince you to stay and order more than one drink, the manager will probably proclaim me his personal hero. I am sure he will find it in his heart to forgive my lack of interest in the other patrons."

"You always were one for words." Sephiroth chuckled to himself. "Perhaps you can better shed light on this little problem of mine. Gods only know that Zack was more of a hindrance than a help, as usual."

"I quite agree."

"Ah, yes. The problem. I am sure you remember the blonde member of my group from the many stories the others indulge in." He paused and waited for Vincent's nod of recognition. "Good. Well, it seems that he has developed quite the attraction to me in recent days, and I must say that I was extremely put out by this in the beginning. I have no problems with people who have a homosexual nature, but I cannot say I am fond of the undertaking myself."

"Yes, you have made that point clear in the past. Very violently if I might add."

"Of course. I would not expect for you to forget that minute incident so easily. But you must remember that I mentioned my distaste only when discussing the beginning of this revelation."

"Now you are confused as to whether you actually like him in that way, or, rather, if you feel sorry for his plight so much that you are sympathizing with him in order to ease the guilt of breaking his heart."

"Dead on as usual."

"Sleep on it. The most superior answers come from a mind that dreams."

**_And there are voices  
That want to be heard  
So much to mention  
But you can't find the words  
The scent of magic  
The beauty that's been  
When love was wilder than the wind_**

Colors and scents swirled around him at the speed of light. He couldn't gather himself together long enough to get his bearings. He was swept up in the whirlwind, twisting and turning as he was thrown higher, and higher, and higher... Until he came crashing to the earth in a multitude of sounds and expressions. Of feelings and memories.

He wanted to stop to catch his breath, but he was being swept along once more, this time down the winding path of his mind. The river of his subconscious churning around him as he reached out for a handhold. A tree branch, a rock, anything! He was past the point of being picky when his head was engulfed in a multicolored wave.

His body spiraled downwards into the depths of his soul. A roller coaster ride to where he was at present. Images flashed before his eyes and he felt himself drowning in their clarity, their sudden meanings. Sound muted once more, the visions of the past where spread out before him, slamming themselves into him at an astounding rate.

Cloud, sitting there, serenely, gazing out as the sun set over a great metropolis.

Cloud, curled up in a ball on a sofa somewhere, pointing out the window with an amused look on his face.

Cloud, running through the fresh falling snow, trying to catch flakes on his tongue while attempting to convince someone to join in the fun.

Cloud, laughing as he was charged with lifting a sword twice his size for a practice swing, yelling as a foot shot out and forced him backwards onto his rear.

Cloud, standing there, sobbing as he hefted the same sword over his head and stared out at some target, begging, without sound, for something not to happen.

Cloud, standing there, surrounded by an ethereal green glow as he held out his hand, mouthing the unmistakable words: "I love you."

Sephiroth shot up in his bed, sweat plastering his clothing to his body, breath coming in ragged gasps. Vivid scenes from his dream fresh in his mind.

So much hadn't been said. So much still needed to be said aloud for full meanings to take hold. His dream had been more symbolic than at first glance. A tribute to the burning love he still held inside, dimmed, but not diminished.

Treacherous words swimming through the front of his mind, spoken by a wise woman once. Reiterated for his benefit in his time of confusion.

"You will not remember me or this place. You will not remember him or his friends. Bonds you create where you are going are made on your own. I don't know why you were chosen by the Lifestream, nor do I know the exact destination, but I do know that there will come a time when all things are coming to a head and the gates will be opened to your lost memories. I can't say that I will be there to help you for sure. Keep aware and always follow where your heart takes you, not your head. Don't let him tell you goodbye for good..."

Sephiroth shook his head to clear it as all the memories took a definitive shape and settled in chronological order. His pale face grew even paler as he realized the magnitude of what he had done to his precious Cloud on that very day.

"Oh shit."

**_Listen to your heart  
When he's calling for you  
Listen to your heart  
There's nothing else you can do  
I don't know where you're going_**

**_And I don't know why  
But listen to your heart  
Before you tell him goodbye _**

Listen to your heart...mm..mmm

I don't know where you're going  
And I don't know why  
But listen to your heart

"Cloud! Wait up! I know you are mad at me, and I deserve your glares and your hatred, but please let me explain. I didn't remember! Yesterday, when I was so rude to you, I hadn't the faintest clue of how much you really mean to me. Please, I an begging you. Forgive me?"

"I was almost ready to say goodbye for good there."

"I know, oh gods do I know."

_**Before you tell him goodbye.

* * *

**_

(1) I took blitzball from Final Fantasy X. It has nothing to do with the plot line, nor will any of the characters from Final Fantasy X be making an appearance.

(2) In this world that I have created, there are groups, kind of like gangs but without the violence. These groups mainly all drive the same type of vehicle or have the same after school activities and it is very rare to be asked to leave a group once inducted in. These groups last for as long as the person in charge is living, causing these groups to be popular among all ages.

(3) As Aries explained towards the end of the chapter, bonds created on their own before the memories of the past had been restored were formed by personality and convience. Vincent and Sephiroth knew each other from an early age and developed a comfortable friendship. Yes, Vincent still has his bronze arm. I will be explaining the reasons as well as the purpose in a later chapter.

Also, Zack appearing in numerous flashbacks has a reason. He is going to play a big role in future chapters, so be on the lookout.

Miko


	5. If I Were Gay

_**Disclaimer: I do not own, nor did I create, any characters from the Final Fantasy VII game. I have not written, nor did I record the song If I Were Gay by Stephen Lynch. Scolion is a city created by me for various purposes. ** _

**

* * *

**

**Here we are, dear old friends.**

_**You and I, drunk again.**_

Vincent leaned back in his chair. It was a Friday night and the seniors had all filed out of the school two hours earlier, intent on a night of fast fun, and hard liquor. The entire graduating class had stumbled into the shady bar and had begun to transform it into the prime dance spot that side of Scolion(1).

The booze flowed and someone had run across the street to the outlet store and bought laser lights and even a rather large, vintage disco ball. A local band had provided the speaker system in exchange for being allowed to play one song an hour for free, and the young men and women had been crowded onto the dance floor since opening. Vincent watched as his acquaintances danced on and on, losing their balance at times and flying into the arms of a new partner.

Be that partner male or female, it didn't seem to matter.

He caught a glimpse of one of his only friends dancing slowly in a corner with his boyfriend. The dark haired man smirked as he saw his silver haired friend lean down for a kiss and begin to gravitate towards the bathrooms. He was glad that everything had worked out for Sephiroth in the end. He, of all people, deserved to be happy.

An irritated yell sounded from his left. He turned his head slightly to watch his other friend, Cid, as the other teen floundered about in the crowd, cursing as he tried to make his way through gyrating bodies and random bar stools. Every bit of furniture not nailed down had been moved so large groups of friend could have quick seating around the dance floor for when the alcohol had made them dizzy. A path cleared as Cid was recognized. No one wished for a broken nose right before a long weekend.

"Hiya, Vince!" The uncouth youth pulled a nearby stool up to the table Vincent had claimed as his own. Blue eyes watched intently as Vincent's head tipped back and the burning Whiskey slid down his throat. It was going to be a long night. "Why ain't you dancin' like the rest of us?"

"I do not wish to." Was the simple answer. He signaled for another shot from his waitress and she bounced over to him, shooting what he supposed to be sexy looks in both teen's directions. Cid stole his drink and downed it himself. Both men were well on their way to intoxication, and it showed. Cid could barely stay in his seat and Vincent's head was beginning to droop of its own accord.

"Awe, come on! Don't be such a fucking square." Cid slapped his friend on the back and Vincent nearly choked on his drink. "Come share a dance with your best friend in the entire fucking world!"

"So then who are you supposed to dance with?" Vincent quipped, completely ignoring the glare of death he was now receiving. It wasn't like he'd never been glared at before, and Sephiroth could throw a mean glare if the situation called for it.

"You son of a bitch..."

_**Laughs have been had and tears have been shed.**_

_**Maybe the Whiskey's gone to my head...**_

"Remember that time when we snuck away from the tour group at the museum during the field trip?" Cid burst out into laughter as the memory came forward in his drunken mind. "Good fucking times, man. Good fucking times."

"I do believe that we almost got expelled for that little stunt. Messing with the practically ancient airplanes suspended fifty feet in the air was not your greatest idea." Cid shrugged as Vincent rolled his eyes. "Also, I do not think the museum curator enjoyed finding out that his planes were still operable. I am quite certain he was perfectly happy with his wall intact."

Cid flicked his wrist in a gesture of indifference. "Fucking square wouldn't know a good thing if it flew up his ass and made a home there. Those planes are probably worth more now that I've fixed them up."

"I think the value was in the fact that they had been shot down during the Great War, not whether they were still able to take flight after a hundred years of stillness."

"Buzz kill."

"Pompous bastard."

"How can you still manage to fucking think of humongerous words while drunk?"

"'Humongerous' is not a word, imbecile."

Regardless of his outward appearance and seeming irritation at the fact that Cid could think of a word as idiotic as 'humongerous,' Vincent found he was having a decent time after all. He was actually beginning to feel glad that he had chosen to come instead of go home and laze about the house until he made it to his bed, which could have taken hours or minutes depending on his mood and his need for food.

"You want to know something that was really humorous?" Vincent asked, not waiting for a reply. "It was that time when Rachel dumped you for another woman."

"Yeah. I fucking cried my damn eyes out that day, didn't I? I suppose it didn't help when I found out she'd dumped the girl she was cheating on me with for a fucking teacher! God damn bitch." Cid muttered. "Fucking sixty year olds is just fucking gross."

"Admit it, you laughed."

"That I fucking did. And what about you? You can't tell me you didn't shed a fucking tear when you got your damn arm stolen."

"That was a totally different circumstance. You know I'm allergic to the prosthetics they tried when I was little. I took a whole year for this thing to be upgraded. I didn't have another year to wait, the gymnastic championships(2) were the next day."

"Yeah, and we had to beat up the punk that did it because the police had their heads so far up their asses that they couldn't see what was right in fucking front of them. You did win, though. I can't say the entire adventure wasn't all that bad either."

"So whatever happened to Drake? I heard from a reliable source that he was seen kissing Mizu in the hall last week."

"You sent Sephiroth to watch after me?"

"No... At least not that day. His boyfriend, Cloud I think his name is, saw it and relayed the message."

"I don't think my relationships should be on trial here. Who's the one who hasn't been on a fucking date in forever? Wait... Have you ever fucking been on a date?"

"Not that I recall."

"All right, Mr. I Think I'm Fucking Better Than You. Who would you date if you absolutely had to chose someone you knew? No damn celebrities. Someone you could actually have a chance with."

Vincent almost fell out of his chair. "I think I might be a little drunk..."

_**But if I were gay,**_

_**I would give you my heart.**_

_**And if I were gay,**_

_**You'd be my work of art.**_

"...But I would have to choose someone I was comfortable with. Someone who I knew would not run screaming at the sight of me. At this time in my life I would have to say that there are no women who meet the criteria, sadly enough. But... And this is a gigantic but, if, and only if I had no other choice in the world, I were gay, which I most certainly am not..."

"Stop beating around the damn bush and get to the fucking point." Cid prodded, though he was sure which direction it was headed in. He always knew that the dark haired man and his silver haired counterpart had always been far too close for there to be no feelings of love from one or the other.

He just wished it didn't hurt so damn much to hear it.

"I guess I would pick... you."

Cid almost fell out of his chair.

"What! Why me? I always thought... Hey? Is this 'cause Seph's got his new boy? I mean... I don't mind and all that shit, but..."

"No!" Vincent was surprised. "Never! We are practically related when it comes right down to it. I could never bring myself to have any thoughts of that nature cross my mind! I have known him since we were in diapers." He suppressed a shudder. "I cannot believe you would ever think something like that."

The whole time Vincent had been fumbling in astonishment and outrage that a person would dare to assume he had a secret flame for his best friend, Cid had been angling his body so that a flying leap would hit the mark.

The mark being Vincent.

Cid leapt.

"Hey! I do not think that your hand belongs there! AH! Get off!"

_**But I'm not gay,**_

_**So get your hand out of my pants.**_

Vincent was now hiding in a darkened corner, a pretty easy feat considering he'd chosen to wear all black that day and always harbored a sort of affection for the shadows. His golden claw was hidden behind his back, the sharp tips retracted so as not to poke into him or rip his clothing. His crimson eyes scanned the crowd for signs of Cid. He'd been hiding ever since he'd managed to kick the other teen off of him about twenty minutes ago.

"Hiding from someone?" The authoritive voice of Sephiroth filtered through the fragments of his thoughts. Vincent winced at his friend's slightly amused tone. He obviously knew what had just occurred and was probably searching for him under Mandate of Cid.

"It is none of your business." Vincent replied and sent a scathing look in his friend's direction. "It will not kill me to stand in the shadows for a time. The lights were giving me a headache."

"And those dumb excuses got you so distracted that you didn't notice Cid walking up from behind you." Cloud pointed out and he dragged his boyfriend away from the now pinned to the floor teenager. The spiky-haired blonde whispered something in his boyfriend's ear that made Sephiroth chuckle as they made their way back to the dance floor.

"ACK!"

_**It's not that I don't care...**_

_**I do.**_

_**I just don't see myself in you.**_

"Cid, I cannot feel my legs." Vincent announced calmly. Cid had been sitting on the aforementioned appendages for at least ten minutes, stating that he wouldn't budge until Vincent gave him a good reason why he couldn't be gay. It was now that Vincent wished, more than ever, that he'd learned how to shoot a gun when his father had been trying to teach him. Shooting himself in the head was becoming a promising option.

"Shoulda thought about that before running away from me without fucking answering my question." Cid answered nonchalantly. He reached into his pocket and lighted a cigarette. "I'm perfectly happy sitting here for a long fucking time."

"Then at least put that thing out. It is going to kill you someday." Vincent coughed. "Not to mention me."

Cid watched as an empty beer can rolled across the floor, followed by at least thirty people dancing by in a conga line. He shrugged to himself. He didn't like dancing all that much anyways. He ignored Vincent completely.

"If I tell you, will you swear to get off me and not seek to molest me again?"

"That would be the general trend, bastard." Cid couldn't help but attempt to mock his friend's polite language and stoic tone of voice, but also couldn't resist throwing in one of his famous curse words.

Vincent took a deep breath as he wracked his brains for something, anything, that would sound plausible enough to warrant Cid's removal from his legs. He was coming up blank.

"The longer you wait, the longer I get to fucking sit here."

"Well, you see..." Vincent began and Cid leaned forward to better hear over the still blasting music. "I just cannot quite picture it in my mind. I like you and everything, but I am assuming it would be odd for both of us, if we took things further."

Cid seemed to mull this over for a minute, but conceded to the his friend's point. In other words, he got up and allowed the blood flow to return to Vincent's legs. Vincent stumbled to his feet and paused so he could regain the feeling in them as well as get rid of the annoying pins and needles feeling.

"And, besides, I would not want you having to limp to school."

"Yeah... Hey! Who fucking said YOU would be on top?"

_**Another time,**_

_**Another scene,**_

_**I'd be right behind you...**_

_**If you know what I mean...**_

Vincent had gracefully climbed atop one of the many ledges running along the top of the bar. After his little dig, Cid had attacked once more. It had been pure luck that saved him from being tackled and sat on again. A random person had wandered in front of him, not paying attention to the fact that they might have been interrupting a conversation.

They were probably going to have one hell of a headache when they woke up.

He'd then run away as fast as he could and launched himself onto the nearest ledge, thanking the fact that he'd taken gymnastics all those years ago and stuck with it like his mothers(3) wanted him to. At that point, he'd slid along the ledge on his belly, figuring that if Cid or Sephiroth had seen his flying leap, they wouldn't be able to see that he'd moved away from his original area.

He cringed and pushed up against the wall, trying desperately to become a part of it when he heard Cid's voice filtering up through the general noise. He was close, and still angry.

"Vincent Valentine! I know you're still fucking here! Get your ass away from where ever the fuck you are and come talk to me, bastard!" Instead of having the desired effect, Vincent realized that he was now less likely to come down than before. Cid had used his name... His entire name. The dark haired teen curled up further, willing himself to become invisible.

He really didn't want to die.

There was something uncomfortable poking him repeatedly in the side. He risk a glace over his ledge to find himself face to face with the tail end of an umbrella. "Vince! I know that's fucking you up there! No other idiot would be fucking curled up in the highest, darkest place in this entire fucking bar."

He poked his head over the edge. "You are not going to kill me?"

"Hell yes I am!"

"Then I think I will stay up here for the time being."

"You deserve fucking death for that dumbass comment of yours! And for only picking me as a fucking last resort!"

"Nice to see you care, but something tells me we are going to get nowhere fast on this tangent. Though I have to say, if you were not poking me with an umbrella, possibly trying to do harm to important internal organs, then I might have bumped you up a notch on the list."

"Really?"

"Yeah..."

_**And If I were gay,**_

_**I would give you my soul.**_

_**And if I were gay,**_

_**I would give you my hole... being.**_

_**And if I were gay,**_

_**We would tear down the walls...**_

Vincent risked another look over the edge of his current nesting spot. Cid was still there, still glaring at him, and still refusing to back down. He sighed heavily. It had already been about half an hour if he wanted to count, and it looked as though no one was going to be backing down in the next few minutes. It was beginning to be a good thing he wasn't afraid of heights because he was beginning to get the idea that he was going to be up there for a long, long time.

Or at least until someone became drunk enough to risk bothering Cid, distracting him long enough for Vincent to make his escape.

Vincent stuck his head farther out over the edge once more in order to ask "Why does this matter so much to you anyway?"

His head whipped out of sight only to the cautiously appear again after Cid took a swipe at his cranium with the umbrella. "Why don't you come down and talk to me like a fucking human instead of fucking staying up there like a damn monkey?"

"Because you will hit me."

"You're fucking right about that one."

"The threats are not helping your case in forcing me to come down."

"Do I look like I give a shit?"

And Cid didn't look as though he cared much for his friend's plight. His arms were folded sternly across his chest and his blue eyes were set in a stubborn glare. The umbrella he must have stolen from the coat room tapped against his thigh in a motion of impatience. Vincent answered truthfully.

"...No..."

"That's what I fucking thought."

"What did you want for me to say?"

Cid was silent for a full minute. Vincent began to relax on his perch. He hadn't been on the offensive all night and it was about time that he received the upper hand.

"I don't fucking know! Something fucking different, okay!"

Now it was Vincent's turn to be quiet. His mind began to wander down several different paths, most of them ending in the same place...

What if Cid liked him like _that?_

And what would happen if he found he didn't want to hurt Cid, but didn't want to be in that sort of relationship with him?

And what would happen if he discovered that he did?

Frankly, both options scared him considerably at the moment.

And in his mentally occupied state, he was more susceptible to enemy attack. One good conk to his noggin (which he'd forgotten to pull back into the shadows and out of the open space by the ledge's end) with the umbrella, sent him tumbling down in a pile of confused limbs and was easily the cause of his, now raging, headache.

It was also the beginning of the second round of molestation that evening.

"Highwind! That hand had better not be going where I think it is!"

_**But I'm not gay,**_

_**So won't you stop cupping my ba... hand...**_

A stool flew through the air and a disgruntled shout rose as it hit the dancing couple next to its intended target. Another stool took flight and smashed into a group of cheerleaders, who then threw their beer on a group of chattering females thinking they were the culprits. The females were none too happy about this and huge fight began in the middle of the dance floor, encompassing all it touched.

Another stool flew by, crashing harmlessly against the wall.

"Get back here you cocky son of a bitch! Stop fucking running away from me! God damned good for nothing fucking masochist!" A streak of blonde leaped out from the warring crowd and his blue eyes latched on to his target: A dark blur that was steadily making its way to the nearest exit.

Oh, did I forget to mention that the dark blur was the one responsible for throwing the badly aimed bar stools?

In fact, another stool came soaring through the air as it narrowly missed Cid and skidded across the floor, knocking a tall guy into a shorter one and causing both to look up in anger at the unwanted interruption.

A door swung open and the cool night air spilled in before it was slammed shut, only to be thrown open once more two seconds later. It slammed back against the wall hard, almost falling from its hinges from the force of Cid's anger.

"Valentine! Don't think I won't fucking catch up to you! There's no more fucking bar stools to throw, bastard!" Cid yelled and innocent pedestrians scattered as both men took the corner a little too tight and ended up rolling around in trashbags in an alley.

Vincent poked his head out of the pile of rotting garbage he was sitting in the find what little of the street he could see from his position as being deserted. Before he could contemplate the strangeness of there being no people out on a famous bar street, late on a Friday night, in the middle of the biggest metropolitan that side of the country, the answer literally hauled him to his feet and pushed him against a wall.

Over the dark shoulder pinning him to the wall, he could see Cid getting a similar treatment from a blonde guy with hair sticking up everywhere... Oh shit...

Suddenly he remembered where he'd seen the same shade of silver hair that was hanging limply over the shoulder he was previously looking over.

"Will you kindly explain why a bar stool was flung against my legs a few minutes ago? And explaining the chaos in the bar would be a brilliant idea as well." If Sephiroth's tone of voice was any indication, people's heads were going to roll.

People being Vincent and Cid.

"Ask Cid." Vincent muttered in hopes of being released. Instead, he was roughly dragged out of the alleyway and up a flight of stairs, Cid's curses echoing after him, proving that the pilot was receiving the same treatment from the oddly strong Cloud.

Sephiroth paused for a few seconds to unlock a door and then unceremoniously tossed his friend into the darkened apartment. Vincent was about to spring to his feet and demand to know what was going on when Cid, still yelling his head off, landed on top of him. He could hear Cid grunt in pain as Cloud kicked him in the shin in order to get him to shut up.

"I do not know what had gotten into the both of you this evening, but it seems to me that you have some sort of misunderstanding between yourselves and I do not think that attempting to kill each other in the middle of a crowded bar is the right way to go about things. So talk, punch each other in the face, do whatever it is that will resolve this conflict before it gets even further out of hand." Sephiroth turned to go. "Oh, and the owner of the bar would like to have a word with you once you are done here. Bring your wallets."

The door slammed and Cid cursed.

_**We've never hugged...**_

_**We've never kissed...**_

_**I've never been intimate with your fist...**_

Now the pair of them were sitting in chairs on opposite sides of what had been revealed to be Sephiroth's apartment. Of course, Vincent had figured as much from the beginning, seeing as he knew that his friend enjoyed being close to, not only the school, but the local nightlife.

The soft click of a lighter signaled Cid beginning his fifth cancer stick since they'd been in there. Vincent sent a glare through the smoke. He hated it when people smoked around him after he'd expressly told them not to. When it came to Cid, however, the other teen normally walked a distance away before lighting up, unless he was doing it on purpose to piss Vincent off.

The dark haired teen was assuming that he was meant to be pissed off.

Vincent took a deep calming breath, turning his head to the side first so as not to get any unwanted smoke in his lungs. "Look." He began. "I would appreciate knowing exactly what it is that I have done to offend you."

"Well running away while I was fucking trying to talk to you was a good fucking start."

"You were the one that jumped on me without my permission and began to... to..."

"To fucking what? You can't even fucking say it. Are you that fucking ashamed that you might not be fucking straight?"

"You know that is not it."

"No, I fucking don't."

Vincent paused for second, gathering his thoughts as he looked out across the room and locked eyes with his friend. His voice took on a solemn tone. "You know that is not it."

Cid sighed, giving in finally. "Yeah, I fucking know. It's the god damn dreams again, isn't it?"

"Think about it Highwind." Vincent's gaze never wavered. "I do like you, as I have stated in the past (4), but a few days later, I begin having these dreams. They terrified me, as you well know. I couldn't help but feel as though the destruction I witnessed was done by me. The people lying there dead, were killed by me. And then there was that strange battle. People falling everywhere, me shooting them down as though they were nothing. You, slicing them to pieces. Fire and ice and electricity everywhere. All I could do was watch as someone aimed their gun at you. Time moved slowly, I moved slowly. I couldn't get there in time, there was no way. A feeling of helplessness and then...pain and darkness and a leering smile. You know these things and yet you still insist that I have no reason to fear, that there is no correlation in events?"

Cid stubbed his cigarette out on the arm of the chair. He broke eye contact and placed his head in his hands. "No. You do have a reason to be afraid."

Vincent made a small noise of surprise and Cid continued. "Last night... I dreamed of the same battle. At first, I thought it was because you'd told me about it, but I soon realized that it wasn't exactly the same. Yes, there was fire and ice and electricity everywhere. Yes, people were lying dead and we were responsible, but there was something else. When the shot was fired, the one you said was intended for me, you did get there in time. You stopped the bullet with your body, living only long enough to make sure I was all right."

"Then I rose and, in a few flying leaps, made my way to the side of the culprit. Intense rage was clouding my conscious mind as I jammed my spear in the body, twisting it and nicking the bastard's heart. And that was where my dream ended with the final cackle of lightening in the background."

"They are both related." Vincent finished. Cid nodded.

The both rose shakily, only to fall into each other's arms. They stayed like that for a while, hugging each other, slumped down onto the floor in Sephiroth's apartment, just holding on to each other.

Just knowing the other was there.

Their first hug.

Their first kiss.

_**You have opened brand new doors...**_

_**Get over here and drop your drawers...

* * *

**_

**_(1) In Scolion the legal drinking age is eighteen, but parent's of seniors who aren't turning eighteen until later on in the year, or not at all during the school year can sign permission forms to allow them into bars and to allow them to serve alcoholic beverages to them at prom and other such dances._**

**_(2) Yes, Vincent does gymnastics... Don't ask, I just wanted to mess with his image a bit, and his natural agility just seemed to point in that direction. Yes, his school has a gymnastics team, and he has lettered as well as won Nationals several times (mainly due to his past life). There may or may not be more on this later._**

**_(3) Vincent also has two mothers... Meaning he was adopted. In any city of my creation (or at least this city anyways) It is perfectly okay to be gay. And since Scolion is a large city, it's practically commonplace._**

**_(4) Previous to this chapter (don't worry, I didn't write a chapter for it so you didn't miss anything), Cid and vincent had been growing closer and closer together, but after admitting that there might be something more, Vincent began to have nightmares in which the last battle from the third chapter was replayed in his mind. There is more as well, but I'll be going into that later._**


	6. Only One

1**_Here I go, scream my lungs out and try to get to you...  
You are my only one_**

Tifa sighed as she rolled over on her bed so that her head was hanging over the edge in an inverted position. She rolled her eyes as she caught a glimpse of an upside-down picture of some male model that was in the magazine her friend was currently drooling on.

"Just because you want to get into that dorky guy's pants doesn't mean that I'm not allowed to look at the hottest male model of our age." Tifa opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off. "And, yes, blond hair sticking up so high it's practically touching the ceiling is dorky, not to mention the freaky fact that it's natural."

"I thought it made him look more innocent, like he'd just rolled out of bed or something." Tifa sighed heavily. "Why hasn't he called yet?"

Yuffie was the one to roll her eyes this time. "Maybe he wasn't as into you as you thought. I know for sure I wouldn't be if I had all those gorgeous boys as my friends."

Tifa gasped as she almost fell off the bed in surprise. "Are you insinuating that he might be... That he was just leading me on for the sake of leading me on?"

"I don't think he meant to lead you on, Tifa. Maybe he's just busy. I know a lot of seniors that have jobs in order to pay for the Year's End party. Perhaps he's biding his time and trying to put together the most romantic evening you've ever seen."

"Do you really think that?"

"No, I think he's gay and you're wasting your time, but whatever makes you happy."

"Yuffie!"

**_I let go, but there's just no one that gets me like you  
You are my only, my only one_**

Two weeks later, the big dance was a few days away and there were no calls from the mysterious blond. Tifa was beginning to think that she had been led on after all, or that he'd forgotten her number.

She was silently trudging through the hallway at school, morosely glaring at the edge of her skirt so as not to see the many happy couples wandering around when Yuffie started going spastic next to her. Now Tifa, being quite used to random bursts of energy from her friend, took no notice and continued dejectedly on her way.

"TIFA!" Yuffie's loud yell jolted her out of the bad place her mind had been currently occupying and back into reality. "I _said_ that I remember where I've seen that weird kid you're so broken up over!"

"You knew him before?" Tifa asked incredulously. Yuffie's memory when it came to Tifa's problems was relatively short. In fact, just yesterday she'd wondered aloud what was taking the mysterious blond so long to call and Yuffie looked at her like she'd just declared that she was going to get a sex-change and rename herself Bob.

Maybe it wasn't so far fetched after all. Tifa was just amazed that her friend had remembered in the first place.

"DUH!" Yuffie placed her hands on her hips as though Tifa were the dumb one. "He's in my third period history class. I'm always bothering him and that creepy guy 'cause it makes me laugh."

All Tifa could do was stare for a full minute. "You knew this entire time where to find him and it just now came back to you?"

Yuffie looked up innocently. "Uh... Yeah."

"After I've been moping and wailing and tearing out my hair for the past two weeks?" Nod. "After I've mentioned him at least three times a day, sometimes more if you happen to be home when I call?" Another nod. "After you have seen him EVERY day in class, most likely sitting right next to him or bothering him WHILE I was probably texting you right at that very minute?"

Pause... And then another nod.

"...I hate you..."

Later the witnesses would swear that they had never seen one teenager go so high or fly so far without the help of wings or alcohol.

Yuffie would say that she'd always wanted a bird's eyes view of the school.

Tifa would say that it was just an average Wednesday.

**_Made my mistakes, let you down  
And I can't, I can't hold on for too long_**

Yuffie found her friend down in the quad pacing up a storm. She silently slipped down the stairs and slid onto a nearby bench. She looked slyly out the corner of her eye to catch a good glimpse of the teenager sitting next to her.

"What you do this time, Yuf?" Nanaki said as he stretched his long legs out in front of him. "I haven't seen her this angry since you put her name in the daily announcements as a 'single cheerleader just looking for a good time.'"

"I just might have mentioned that I knew of a class Cloud's taking and forgot to tell her about it sooner..." Yuffie shrugged apologetically when she felt the glare of her friend fall upon her. Tifa just paced on, not even noticing the two, in plain sight, watching her progress.

"You know that Aries asked you not to mention it at all."

"But Red!" Yuffie wined. "She's really torn up about him not calling. Just look at her! She's going to wear a hole right through the concrete. She thinks he's avoiding her because of something she did, not because he just happened to find his soul mate before she appeared."

Nanaki sighed and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. "That's what I like so much about you, Yuffie. You truly do care about your friends. But, next time, could you please listen to Aries? She's got everyone's best interests at heart as well."

Yuffie leaned further into the embrace. "I'll try and remember next time. I'll tell you one thing, though. She still punches hard."

Nanaki chuckled. "I gathered as much when someone came up to me in order to inform me that my girlfriend was last seen flying fifty feet above the school screaming that she was sorry for something."

"Has Aries mentioned finding anyone else?" Yuffie asked, changing subjects quickly, seeing as following down that road would only lead to more detentions. They already served two that week for Public Displays of Affection and with the dance looming so close, they weren't going to take any chances.

Nanaki watched calmly as she began twirling a strand of his long, auburn hair around her slender fingers. "Yes. She said she found Rude and Elena some time last week and that Reeve popped up a few days ago. Get this; he was moving in with Reno. Aries thinks they might have bonded already. She's going downtown to check the city records today."

"Aww!" Yuffie clapped her hands happily. "I just knew it! Do you think that means they have their memories back?"

"She seems to think so." Nanaki shrugged. "I talked to Vincent yesterday as well. He said that Cid and he were down in the party district a while back to celebrate Cid's passing the exit exam and they ran into Reno. He's apparently a detective downtown."

"Really? I guess we're on the wrong side of the fence when it comes to him again."

"True. Teenagers in this day and age rarely seem to get along with the law enforcement, but I'm quite certain this city, while not being perfect, is nowhere near as bad as Shin-Ra was. Maybe this time he's going to get to live the life he wanted to back then."

"You really think he had the best of intentions when he dropped that plate on those poor innocent people!" A loud roar came from somewhere behind them. Both teens jumped and landed in a sprawled out heap on the floor.

"Barret! What a pleasant surprise." Yuffie giggled nervously. "What brings you to our school on this beautiful day?"

"I was coming to speak to Cid about the adjustment he's supposed to do on my arm so I don't have to keep manually switching from my normal one to my gun one, but now I want to hear the rest of what you were talking about. Something about those damn Turks not being as bad as they seemed?" Barret crossed his muscular arms over his chest and swelled with anger.

"Guys..." Tifa's soft voice filtered into their conversation and all heads turned in her direction. "I think I remember what it was I did to make Cloud so angry at me..."

**_Ran my whole life in the ground  
And I can't, I can't get up when you're gone_**

"Tifa, please stop crying. You know I can't stand it when any of my friends cry. Tifa, please. We're going to be late for class. They could suspend us and you've already bought such a pretty dress for the party. Come on, it's not as bad as it seems; you're twisting this way out of proportion. It's not that he hates you, it's just that he doesn't know where you live and I'm sure he didn't know you went to this school. Please stop crying..."

Yuffie's voice faded as she sensed a different presence behind her. A cold, pale hand was placed on her shoulder and another set of strong arms silently lifted her up and gently placed her in the safe arms of Nanaki. She watched with tears flowing freely down her own cheeks as she watched Sephiroth gently picked her sobbing friend from the ground and placidly follow Cloud into the school building.

The rest of the group stood in silence as they watched the glass door close slowly behind their friends.

Tifa, on the other hand, was incapable of even noticing that she had been picked up and was now being carried to a more secluded spot led by the one person she'd wanted to see for weeks. All she knew was that she had made a tragic mistake and now the love of her life was never going to talk to her again. He was going to hate her for what she'd done. He was going to hate her for what she hadn't done.

"Tifa."

She was being lifted, carried somewhere, only she didn't care where. Someone was holding her tightly. The voices all around here were rising and falling as she was being carried to her destination. A part of her was screaming for her to stop, to wake up and see what was going on. Screaming at her that she should be doing something. Screaming that she knew the person carrying her. Screaming that nothing she could do would change a thing.

"Tifa."

She had been curled up in a ball surrounded by her own grief when she'd noticed that something wasn't quite right in the forest all around her. It was far too quiet, and in the silence there were noises she'd only heard in battle. The clanking of metal against stone, armor against bark filled in the gaps through the eerie quiet..

"She's dreaming. Leave her."

She had been running for hours. Her legs hurt and her breaths came in short gasps. She sunk to the ground, grasping the stitch in her side. She tried to reach in her pockets for her gloves, but found that she didn't want to fight after all. It wasn't like she had much left to live for.

_**And something's breaking up (breaking up)  
I feel like giving up (like giving up)**_

_**I won't walk out until you know**_

It wasn't like she had ever really been the same after Cloud's death and all the questions it had left behind. She thought that he had really loved her, and maybe he had once. She couldn't say for certain and there was no way that she could ask him now.

Maybe if she had been nicer to him, he wouldn't have felt the need to go off and make something of himself. If he hadn't left then he most certainly wouldn't have met Sephiroth until much later on in life, and in such a short time period that there would have been no way that something could have happened to lead to their falling in love. If he'd stayed home then he never would have been taken prisoner by Hojo. She had wished back then that someday he would return better than ever before. She'd wished for a lot of things.

But if wishes were horses then beggars would ride after all.

Once she'd hit the tender age of thirteen, she'd deemed wishes as simple girlish fantasies. Wishes only got you so far, you had to be strong enough to reach out and take what you wanted for yourself. She thought she was making the right decision. She thought that if she could train her body to it's highest potential, then she could make it so that she wouldn't have to waste half her life wishing for things that would never come.

But, if she was going to be entirely truthful to herself, she would have to say that she'd never really stopped wishing for the things she wanted.

Sure, it wasn't the little wishes she indulged in any longer. The small, insignificant things that every person finds themselves wishing for. Find a missing object. Praying that little glinting thing in the floor grate is actually a pile of gil. Wishing that you will get a passing grade on a test. She had all that behind her. It did no good to wish for the little things that she could get with the minimum of effort on her part.

It was the things that she didn't even know she wanted that she found herself wishing for.

Now, lying there lonely in the forest with hundreds of monsters roaming around, most likely searching for her after finding the camp empty, she saw herself for the first time.

She hadn't given up wishing like she'd so wanted to believe. In fact, in order to cope with not consciously wishing for every little thing in the universe, she'd begun to do it subconsciously.

She's wished that someone would notice her and take her life from boring to exciting. She'd wished for Cloud to notice her and fall in love with her so that she could fulfill her greatest wish of all.

She wanted someone strong to protect her for once.

That's right. The girl who claimed to everyone that she was tough enough to take care of herself and that she didn't need, or want, a man around to do the job for her, wished that she could have someone to run into battle for her. That someone would care enough to tell her to stay home, regardless of the fact that he knew she would be coming along whether he liked it or not. That someone would care enough to push her out of harm's way.

And when Cloud had showed up in her life once more, she thought she had finally found the man she was looking for.

It was just too late...

_**Here I go, scream my lungs out and try to get to you  
You are my only one  
I let go, but there's just no one that gets me like you  
You are my only my only one**_

She could sense the monsters gathering around her. She had her gloves, true, but other than those, there was nothing in the general area that she could use as a weapon. Maybe she would able to hold them off until her screams could alert her friends to the danger. Well, she knew she would be able to hold them off at least that long, but she didn't want to.

They were all going to die eventually, why prolong the inevitable?

And she would finally be back with Cloud, where she belonged.

But what would her friends think? What would Cloud think? He had to be able to see her from wherever he was. Would he still love her if she killed herself? Would he even care?

Did he even love her to begin with?

She screamed in frustration, cutting herself off halfway through, remembering that her friends were supposed to be nearby. If she was going to do this thing, then she couldn't have anyone finding out and trying to stop her, for that's exactly what they would have done.

She didn't want to be stopped. She wanted to make her decision with no regrets and no guilt.

She wanted those damn monsters to fucking attack already!

And, as if reading her mind, they did. And, just as she had promised herself, she didn't raise her fist to defend herself. She bit her lip to hide her cries as the demons began to devour her alive. Tears streamed down her face as she stared blankly up at the bright, blue sky as her lower body was being painfully torn to shreds.

Cloud, why couldn't you love me?

_**Here I go so dishonestly  
Leave a note for you my only one  
And I know you can see right through me  
So let me go and you will find someone**_

Tifa's eyes fluttered open as the blurred images surrounding her began to form some semblance of order. She had a headache to end all headaches, and the vibrant sight of her legs being torn off one by one and eaten in front of her was at the front of her mind.

Why did she have to remember?

"Cloud, I think she's waking up." The voice... It sounded so familiar to her. Where had she heard that voice before? The images were clearing. Silver hair? Now that was odd. She felt as though she should know who was leaning over her.

Wait a second... Cloud! Where?

She shot up her seat, coming back to full consciousness with a start. "Cloud!"

"Yes, Tifa? I'm right here." She swung her head around and came face to face with the man she'd been longing to see for so long, much longer than anyone could have guessed. "Is something wrong?"

Yes, something was wrong. She was crying. She never cried. She never wanted to cry. Crying was weakness. Weakness was bad. So why now, of all time, was she crying? Why did he have to bring out the weakness in her? Why did she have to love him?

Why wouldn't he love her?

"You hate me." She whispered. Her brown gaze never left the piercing blue eyes of her one and only love. "You hate me for what I did. You hate me for what I didn't do. You hate me, and there's not a damn thing I can do to change your mind!"

At this point, she threw herself forward off the bed and lay in collapsed heap on the floor. "You don't need me! You never did! None of you wanted me around!" The nurse ran into the clinic only to be shoved out again by strong hands. "You all lied! Every last one of you lied to me! You said you'd be there for me if I needed you, if I was in trouble, or if I needed saved, but you weren't there! You fucking went with him the moment he beckoned! What about your promise? Our promise?"

"Why won't you love me the way I love you?"

Silence filled the air, the only sounds to be heard were Tifa's racking sobs. No one stirred, not even to help the girl back to the clinic bed. No one even dared to breathe.

"I don't hate you."

Tifa shot up into a sitting position, tears flowing freely down her pale face, her red-rimmed eyes asking her silent questions. _Why? Why don't you hate me? I killed myself. I knew it was wrong, I knew you'd warned me against it many times, but I didn't care about that. I wanted to hurt you. I wanted to show you that I wasn't going to follow you blindly any longer. So why are you forgiving me? Why aren't you angry with me._

"Why won't you hate me!"

Cloud recoiled out of surprise. Hate? Could he hate her? He could hate others so easily. He could hate things, people, events, but yet, he could not hate her. Not even when she was begging him to, not even when she was pleading.

A gentle hand was placed on his shoulder. Sephiroth. What would he think? What could he possibly think? There was no way to explain what he was thinking.

"You are not fooling anyone, girl." Sephiroth's calm voice was enough to calm Cloud. The panic that had been slowly creeping up faded from his mind. "You do not want him to hate you, anymore than you want me to be alive, but there are some things you have no control over. There are some things you cannot plan for nor can you stop them. I know what it is that you truly wish."

"You wish not to be forgotten, and yet, you want him to let you go."

_**Here I go, scream my lungs out and try to get to you  
You are my only one  
I let go, but there's just no one, no one like you  
You are my only, my only one  
My only one  
My only one  
My only one**_

Caught up in your past, stuck between the tears you've shed and the place you wish to be. The person you wish to be. You can't seem to find yourself. Why? That question follows you until the end of time. Why didn't I do this? Why didn't someone do that? Why are the people I love so frustrating? Why?

Just tell me why!

The question consumes you. It leaves you broken and bleeding within your own mind. You cannot eat, sleep, think without knowing the answer. But all those around you, the ones you call your friends, have all seemingly moved past their backgrounds and have become better people. And you are still mired in the past. And all you can ask is why.

Why gods damn it? Why!

If the one you love lets you go, then you have something tangible, something you can take home with you and say, 'Ah, now it is finished. Now I know why. Now I am complete.' But what if he doesn't want to let you go? There are many levels of love. Not everything falls under the question why.

I don't understand!

He doesn't love you, and yet... he does. He doesn't hate you, and yet... he does. You want him to be with you forever, and yet... you don't. The grey area expands to encompass everything you've ever known. You want to be strong and yet... deep inside... you don't. The question leaves no room for the grey you've just encountered, and yet... it all seems to fit.

Then why has no answer.

Why has no answer, and now... You understand...

_**You are my only, my only one**_


	7. Photograph

_**Disclaimer: I did not put this in the last chapter by accident, but the Final Fantasy VII characters and associated plot points do not belong to me. I have just twisted a few of them to my understanding of the game and movie. The song Only One was sung by Yellowcard and in no way whatsoever did I write it. In this chapter the song Photograph is sung by Nickelback and was also not written by me, nor do I belong to the band who sings it.**_

****

**_And thank you, someone I can't remember, for pointing out the misspelling of Aeris' name. My computer was changing it without me even noticing... Go figure._**

_**

* * *

Look at this photograph  
Every time I do it makes me laugh  
How did our eyes get so red?  
And what the hell is on Cait Sith's head?**_

Cloud sighed as he sank down into the plush couch. He ran a hand through his unruly spikes as someone tossed a heavy, leather-bound book onto his lap. He looked up, blue eyes widening in surprise as Sephiroth took up his customary spot on the other end of the overly large sofa.

"Look at it."

The blond looked down and shook his head slowly. He raised his eyes up to meet the intense jade of his lover's. He knew that he really shouldn't be afraid to look at a stupid yearbook, but it still hurt thinking about everything. All the things that had happened since that wonderful day. They had all been so young, himself included.

It hurt to see all of them in that way. Young, enthusiastic, bubbling with energy in the way that teenagers so often are. Each one of them had plans for their futures. Each one of them thought they were going to make those dreams come true. There was no way he would be able to look at them like that, with a smile on every face. He didn't think he could bear it.

"You know that you have to. You cannot hide from it forever, Cloud, and I do not advise you to try."

Cloud sent a glare the silver-haired man's way. Sephiroth merely shrugged and began looking out the window. Cloud didn't take his seemingly uncaring stance for granted. He knew that if he tried to get up, he'd just find himself sprawled on the floor with the book being dropped painfully on his head.

"Please don't make me do this." Cloud pleaded. He was being pathetic and he knew it. At one time in his past, he'd been afraid of nothing, but then the past had crept up on him like a silent disease, forcing him into the realm of fear. It always happened, no matter how far he managed to go, and this was just another painful reminder of how everything could be snatched from you in an instant. Another reminder of how cruel and uncaring fate can really be. "I can't handle it and you know it."

"Yes, you can, and you are going to. Do not even think about looking at me with hatred and pleading in your eyes."

Cloud could hear the silent, 'This is hard enough for me as it is.' He almost laughed. Sephiroth was as predictable as always. Never saying anything that might be taken as weakness by the wrong person. His mood rose a notch, only to plummet once he realized that his hand was absentmindedly tracing the lettering on the cover of the yearbook.

'Scolion Inner City High.' He thought. 'It wasn't the best school in the best neighborhood, but it did give us good times. Classes were hell. Teachers could be hell depending upon if you got on their bad sides or not. The cheerleaders were still the hottest girls in school and all the jocks wanted them, or, barring that, each other.' What more could he say about it? School was school.

It had been the people that had made it all worthwhile.

He took a deep breath, blinked rapidly a few times to clear his head, and eased open the cover of the book to a random page...

_Graduation..._

The picture had been taken during the Senior picnic. It had been after their memories had returned. The entire group had shown up, adults included. They'd had the time of their lives that day and here it was, immortalized for future generations in this tiny book.

Cloud sighed as he gently ran his fingers over the edge of the photo. Everyone looked so happy, as he knew they would. He just wished it didn't feel as though someone had just taken a huge truck and slammed into him with it going sixty miles per hour.

They were in the center, seeing as it had taken four of his friends to get Sephiroth even remotely near where the pictures were being taken and he would have inched out of the shot if left to his own devices. Cloud was smiling and most likely laughing internally as he wrapped his arm around his boyfriend's waist. Was that the ghost of a smile he saw on Sephiroth's lips? He thought it was.

Then standing to their right was Zack, grinning his familiar lopsided grin even as a light blush tinted his cheeks. The cause of the blush was on his back, receiving a piggyback ride from her boyfriend. Aeris was laughing as she was frozen in time, lightly pecking Zack's cheek and causing him to blush just in time for the picture.

Next to them was the inseparable duo of Yuffie and Nanaki. Both were grinning insanely with their hands behind their backs. It had turned out that they had been hiding water balloons back there and once the picture was done being taken, the entire group had found themselves soaked, promoting a large-scale water war that had reached out to encompass the entire senior class, with much laughing, groping, and staring at girls running around in wet white T-shirts for the straight and lesbians of the group.

Continuing on down the right side of the picture revealed Tifa, grinning to herself as she held up the stuffed cat her boyfriend had won her the other day. He hadn't been able to come to the picnic since he went to a different school, but he was very much there in spirit. The entire group had accepted him without any questions and finally made Tifa feel as though she had a place to belong. The incident the winter before the big dance had never been brought up again, nor did it need to be.

Tracing back over to the center of the picture he saw Rude standing demurely a few feet behind and to the left of himself. If Cloud had anything to say about it, the dark-skinned man would rather have been anywhere but chaperoning a bunch of teens as they worked out all their pre-graduation jitters. But the blond knew that deep down the ex-Turk was enjoying the party despite himself. Now if only they could have gotten him to take off his ever present sunglasses.

Sitting on the ground was Barret, his gun arm conspicuously absent since weapons weren't allowed at school functions. The dark man was smiling into the camera, carefree and happy, event though the Turks were inches away. It had taken some time, but, with a little convincing on all parts, past sins had been forgiven.

Next to him Reeve was laughing as he wrapped his arms around Reno's neck. They were both sitting on a bench, with the executive in Reno's lap. Reno had his ever present smirk on and Cloud couldn't help but see that his hands were oddly missing from anywhere that the camera could see. He could only guess where they were, with a high measure of accuracy of course. The both of them had taken off work in order to have a fun time with old friends.

Off in the corner of the picture, both bodies barely fitting in the frame, were Cid and Vincent. Cloud couldn't suppress a chuckle at the sight of Cid forcibly dragging Vincent within the boundaries of the picture. That had been an undertaking. Vincent hated pictures, even more so than Sephiroth. Though both parties looked fairly disgruntled, Cloud could still make out the sheen of happiness in their eyes. God how much he missed them.

All of them.

**_And this is where I grew up  
I think the present owner fixed it up  
I never knew we'd ever went without  
The second floor is hard for sneaking out _**

He flipped through the pages filled with smiling students he didn't know, and a few he did. He finally came to a stop on the page entitled, 'Tour of the Rooms that Made us Great.' Ten pages, twenty students, each one getting their own page to showcase their unique rooms. He could still remember the timid staff photograph who'd shown up at their place with her camera clutched tightly to her chest.

He turned a page and settled deeper into the sofa as a familiar front door sat staring back at him. Sephiroth's place. His place. Their place. The top of the page proclaimed in bold letters, 'Cloud Strife and Sephiroth had been living together ever since December and didn't mind sharing their bedroom with us.' The cheery font made him wince. That apartment hadn't been the best place they could have gotten, filled with many bad memories of early relationship fights and angry parents. The oxymoron almost smothered him.

And there they were, Sephiroth with his back to the camera as he pulled out a textbook from one of the worn-down bookshelves they'd found at the local thrift store. Cloud was spread out on the bed, the worn silver sheets crumpled up around him as though he'd been taking a long nap instead of posing for a school picture. Splashes of color littered the messy room. Clothing, books, backpacks, art supplies, and the like were on every hard surface, including, but not limited to, the floor. The main attraction was the overly large blue lavalamp that sat on the floor next to the bed and that stretched up so that it almost touched the white ceiling. Cloud had always been meaning to put some wallpaper or something up, but had always gotten distracted.

He wished he knew what happened to that lamp.

A couple pages down the line and he hit another heading that caught his eye. 'Vincent Valentine gave us a rare look into his home life.' Cloud knew for a fact that the entire stunt had been coordinated by Cid, most likely without Vincent's knowledge. He tried to hide his grin as he looked at the picture.

Vincent's room was dark, just as Cloud had figured it would be. There were shadows everywhere, black wall paper, red bedspread that was made up perfectly, as though no one had ever slept there in their entire lives. Vincent was sleeping soundly at his desk, head resting on an open textbook, also lending a hell of a lot of proof to the theory that Cid was behind this. Vincent would never allow anyone to come in his home and take his picture while he was sleeping. He wouldn't even_ pretend_ to sleep around, well, anyone.

The next page was Yuffie's room. It was painted in so many different colors, in so many different shades that Cloud was getting dizzy just by looking at it. The girl herself was bouncing up and down on her bed, pretending to chatter into her bright orange phone. Cloud shook his head at that. The little ninja was rarely seen without her phone at her ear and the entire school knew it. The teachers didn't even bother to confiscate the device after some time, since it would only make an appearance the next day.

He absentmindedly flipped through the rest of the section, not finding any of his other friend's rooms. It didn't matter. He'd seen them all before, but it was different now. Everything was different now.

_**And this is where I went to school  
Most of the time had better things to do  
Criminal record says I've broke in twice  
I must have done it half a dozen times **_

Once again, a picture caught Cloud's eye. It was under the 'Student Life' section, the part of the book where the students were caught unawares as they were walking down the hall. Pictures of students laughing with friends, pushing and shoving each other as they raced to class at the last second, and a well-timed food fight at lunch had made the cut to land on this page.

But he didn't care about all those pictures. In them he could vaguely see shots of his school friends, his acquaintances, and even some of his enemies, but he didn't care about them for the moment. This wasn't about the people he knew from school and school alone and he knew it. He'd come too far to be distracted. He wouldn't do that to himself.

It was the picture in the lower left corner that caught his gaze and held it.

It had been taken after school in the parking lot. An old beat-up truck was hovering in it's space, the owner grinning cockily out at a girl who was leaning up against the streamlined, cherry red sports car in the spot next to it. Her gentle, green eyes lit up with laughter as she held out her hand to stop the boy from continuing his joke. Zack didn't look like he was listening however and Cloud could easily see the tinge of love in his eyes as he watched Aeris double over in mirth.

The caption simply read, 'Zackary Charon entertains his girlfriend Aeris Gainsborough after school.'

And Cloud felt his heart breaking.

**_I wonder if it's too late  
Should I go back and try to graduate  
Life's better now than it was back then  
If I was them I wouldn't let me in _**

_Graduation..._

Cloud looked up at Sephiroth's unyielding frame as the word spun through his head. How had he felt when they'd gotten the news? He hadn't acted any differently. He hadn't said anything that was out of character.

He'd barely even acknowledged the counselor.

"I'm sorry Mr. Strife... Not enough credits... I don't know who gave you your information, but it was wrong... Summer school... Graduate in fall... Nothing I can do... Sephiroth, too... computer glitch... I'll need your caps and gowns back as soon as possible... So sorry..."

And that was the first setback in the long line of setbacks that had quickly become their lives.

Apparently, someone in the counseling office had royally fucked up, giving Cloud and Sephiroth more credits than they actually had. They hadn't been the only ones, and some students had been forced to continue high school even after they should have graduated because their credits had been erased. It was a huge scandal, but it all ended up with one result.

They weren't allowed to graduate with their class, the college they'd been accepted into took away their scholarships, informing them that it wouldn't be there anymore, even if they continued on to get their diplomas. They hadn't been the only ones, Tifa had fallen victim to it as well.

So they'd had to watch from the audience as their friends and acquaintances strode up to the podium on the school's lawn and received their well-earned diplomas. But that wasn't what bothered Cloud so much. He didn't mind not be able to graduate with his class. He minded not being able to graduate at all.

For his parents had approached him after the ceremony with an ultimatum. Either he packed up his stuff and moved back in with them so they could keep an eye on him, breaking up with Sephiroth in the process since his parent's viewed the other boy as nothing more than a bad influence, or he would be completely and totally cut off from the family funds.

Meaning that he was going to have to go job hunting the first second he could.

He told them exactly where they could shove their offer and went back to his boyfriend's side, knowing that Sephiroth would murder him later when he found out, but not caring too much. Cloud wasn't going to lapse back into taking orders that he rather wouldn't just to please a few people. He was going to live his life the way he wanted to this time, comfort be damned.

And he was never giving up Sephiroth again, not even for the slightest moment.

Sadly enough, Sephiroth had never been the richest person in the world, and the apartment was too much for the two boys to pay for, even if they both had part-time jobs. But they couldn't move. It was the cheapest place they'd been able to find. The only thing they could do was drop out of school for good and snap up the first full-time job that came their way.

Tifa had been luckier and ended up being shipped off to college that fall with her diploma gripped firmly in her hand. She'd promised to call, just as they all had, but that plan had ended on a bad note when she went two months without them hearing from her. Once she finally remembered her promise, they'd moved, leaving no forwarding address.

Cloud and Sephiroth had tried not to take the disinterest of their so-called friends so hard, but it hurt. Neither of them had lived any of their lives in anything that could have been called good circumstances, and once they had found people who claimed to want to be by their sides forever, it was a horrible feeling knowing that they weren't needed in the first place. No one had stood by their sides when it turned out that they weren't as perfect as they made out to be.

And they hadn't come when they were needed in response.

**_Oh oh oh oh  
Oh God I, I _**

Every memory of looking out the back door  
I have the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor  
It's hard to say it, time to say it  
Goodbye goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door  
I found the photo of the friend that I was looking for  
It's hard to say it, time to say it Goodbye goodbye

Cloud shifted his weight and a slightly creased photograph fell out of the book. He didn't even have to look to know what it was.

A picture of Zack, nothing special, just a portrait that you could get done at any corner drugstore, but it wasn't the picture that was important. It was the promise behind it.

"Here. Take it. Drop us a line some time, kay?" Zack had been smiling, just like he always was, but there was something in his eyes that spoke of a deep sadness. "Life's just not going to be the same without you two. I'll write you all the time, and call, too. Maybe, after college, we can all get a big home together. It'll be just like old times!"

Cloud ran his fingers over the number on the back of the picture. The stark, black lines stood out against the white background. 'Don't forget to call.'

Well, they had forgotten, just as everyone else had. Life had reared its ugly head and had wedged itself fully in the way. Promises had been broken and feelings had been hurt. People had disappeared and friendships had crumbled.

It wasn't a pretty sight.

But what were you going to do? Cloud and Sephiroth couldn't afford to spend the money it would take to visit their friends. The energy cells required for such a distance for the bikes alone would have cost more than they made in a week. To spend that much, just for a few days? It didn't make sense.

The other's could have taken the initiative, too, but they had college courses to pass, new friends to make. Vincent and Cid weren't even in the country any longer. They were traveling from competition to competition for Vincent's gymnastics. Tifa was off in the next city over, living it up with her boyfriend and partying like there was no tomorrow. The last they'd heard from her was her announcement that she was engaged and wanted them at her wedding. They hadn't been able to make it.

Barret was off in some desert somewhere, digging around looking for ancient artifacts along with his archeology class. It had been an odd thought to get used to, the large man handling such fragile artifacts, but who were they to scrutinize? Cloud worked at a bar and Sephiroth was hauling cement for a local construction company. How could they compete with people like Reeve and Reno? The executive had quickly risen in the business world and was now pulling in seven figures a year. The redhead was content with his 'piddly' detective job. The truth was, it was just a hobby to him now. A time consuming hobby, but a hobby none the less. When you're out there dodging bullets for fun, you don't really get much time to think about much else.

The other Turks were off doing their own things as well, mostly law enforcement gigs here and there. It was kind of ironic really. Yuffie and Nanaki had gone off and become models. It was nothing too big or too important, but they had a lot of promise. It wouldn't do for them to be seen with regular Joes. Though, if Cloud really thought about it, Sephiroth and himself weren't exactly lacking in the looks department. That didn't matter, however. It wasn't like they were going to be going out of their way to become famous any time soon, no matter how much it paid. They'd had more than enough of that in their previous life and figured that they could survive if the limelight wasn't pointed on them twenty-four/seven.

Aeris and Zack were happy where ever they were in the world, and that was enough of that.

**_Remember the old arcade  
Blew every dollar that we ever made  
The cops hated us hanging out  
They say somebody went and burned it down _**

Cloud shut the book with a brisk snap. Sephiroth looked up from the paper he was reading. "They are going to call for us some day. The Lifestream needs us to do something on this Planet, and Aeris was fairly certain that it wanted all of us for a reason."

"I know that." Cloud ran his hand through his untamable hair. "It doesn't stop the hurt."

Sephiroth nodded that he understood as he gracefully rose to his feet. "Contemplate it some other time. You are about to be late for work."

"Shit!" Cloud leapt to his feet and scurried around the apartment collecting his uniform and other such paraphernalia. This was going to be a long night...

And it was starting to look like he had been right in his earlier assumption. The night seemed to be dragging on forever. He poured shot after shot, drink after drink. He watched as women and men staggered up to the bar in order to demand service. He fended off women, and men, as they hit on him mercilessly. So what? His looks had gotten him the job in the first place. When he'd first stumbled into the bar looking for work, he couldn't tell the difference between a Lite beer and a regular one.

He had his back turned when he sensed another customer sliding onto the bar stool behind him. He ignored whoever it was in favor of wiping down his work surface. "Hey, I hear they tore down the old club on Main Street. You know, the one we all used to go to on Friday nights when we didn't want to go home?"

Cloud's hands tightened their grip on the rag he was using. He braced himself against the ledge and stared into the mirror, trying to get a better grasp on his rolling anger. "No. I did not know that. Thank you for informing me. I don't see what I can do about it now."

"Cloud... I know you're mad at us, all of us, but you've got to believe me when I say that I, at least, am sorry..."

"No, you're not." Cloud was trying desperately not to start screaming and yelling and throwing things. It wouldn't do to get fired. "What ever happened to, 'I'll write you all the time and call you and some day we can all get a house together'? Do be sure to tell me if I'm not saying it right."

"Look, I was an idiot. I should have known that it would mean so much to you." Zack ran his hairs absentmindedly through his dark locks. "I should have known better, but I didn't."

It was now that Cloud turned in order to face his former friend. "You're right. You, of all people, should have known better. You knew how I felt about being forgotten. You were the one that used to calm me in the middle of the night when I'd have nightmares about everyone forgetting my existence. You were the one I bared my soul to first and you know it. That's why you're here now, looking for the world like a guilty child who's been caught with his hand in the cookie jar."

Zack shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He began to tap the toes of his boots nervously against the floor. Cloud knew that he'd hit a nerve, a major guilty spot for the other man. "Hell, I wish I had a good excuse for what I did, but I don't. I got caught up in being young, just being young. Not having to murder people day after day, week after week. Not having to deal with higher ups telling me where to go and what to do. Just being young and in love, with the world stretched out in front of me for the taking. You know exactly what I'm talking about, don't even try and say you don't. You felt it, too. Finally being able to do what _you_ want with your life. Be with who _you _want to be with."

"Live the way _you _want to live, the past not mattering any more."

Cloud was silent. The bar's patrons were laughing and talking and carrying on all around him. Somewhere inside him, he knew that he shouldn't be focusing his attentions on one person, but that didn't matter so much. His shift was almost over as it was. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"Seph will be here soon to pick me up." Cloud said softly. "We can talk then."

**_We used to listen to the radio  
And sing along with every song we know  
We said someday we'd find out how it feels  
To sing to more than just the steering wheel _**

Cloud was leaning against the wall outside the bar, kicking a rock back and forth distractedly. Anything so that he wouldn't have to acknowledge Zack, standing not even two feet away. Sephiroth was late, again. This was fast becoming a trend that Cloud was most certainly not liking, especially at this specific moment in time.

"Does he normally take this long?" Zack's unwanted commentary was pushing Cloud far past the edge of reason. True, this was normal, but Cloud would have thought that the other man would at least take into account the fact the he really wasn't wanted at the moment and remain fairly silent. Then again, perhaps it was too much to ask for Zack to respect the feelings of others, seeing as how horribly he'd been doing in that field as of late.

"No." Cloud answered, his voice tinged with obvious annoyance. "Sometimes he oversleeps. He works days, I work nights, we sleep whenever we can."

Zack seemed to take that as a decent answer and went back to silently staring at a wounded cockroach as it attempted to go somewhere. It was kind of interesting really. The thing couldn't have had more than two legs in use and was going in a small circle, moving about a millimeter every minute or so.

"Hey, Cloud?" Okay, now he was just talking for the sake of hearing his own voice. "Did you ever think that thing might turn out this way? I mean like back when we were teenagers. Did you ever think that it was going to come down to this?"

Luckily, or not so luckily depending on which side of the fence you're on, Sephiroth pulled up at that moment on his bike.

"Zack?" The older man leaned back in his seat as he took in the sight before him. Cloud sulking while kicking a rock back and forth, desperately trying not to look at his obviously unwanted companion. And the unwanted companion was nudging a dying roach with the toe of his boots, attempting to look as though he were just out for a stroll and had just chose to lean against a nearby bar for a well-deserved rest.

Then again, if Zack had to deal with Cloud's blatantly ignoring him for gods knew how long, perhaps he did deserve that rest.

Zack looked up at the sound of his name and gave a sheepish wave. "Hey, Seph. I was just in the neighborhood and wanted to stop by to see how the two of you were doing."

Sephiroth internally flinched when he noticed Cloud stiffen next to his friend. He knew how the blond felt about being left alone, knew that Zack had done more than just hurt Cloud's feelings when he never called back all those years ago. Sephiroth had stayed after all, had stayed of his own free will, never knowing exactly how hard it hit his lover when someone who used to depend on him, didn't need him any longer. Never knowing until it was too late.

"Well, can we have this little chat in the bar?" Sephiroth suggested. "It is getting colder by the minute out here."

It was partially the truth. It was getting cold with the fresh onslaught of winter, but none of the men present really felt the freezing temperatures and the biting winds. None of them could explain exactly why, but they weren't complaining.

"Where we have this 'little chat' doesn't matter." Cloud voice had taken on a hard and bitter tone that Sephiroth had hoped to never hear again. It was the same voice he'd used in the moments before he'd plunged the tip of the Buster sword right into him during the final battle for the Planet so many lifetimes ago, but it seemed that not everything could be left behind, even when they'd been given a second chance. "Let's just get this whole damn thing over with and go on with our respective lives, all right?" He turned to Zack, anger flashing clearly in his blue eyes. "You asked me a question. Do you still want the answer?"

Gulping, Zack nodded. As much as he knew that he was going to regret even asking such a stupid question, he truly wanted to know the answer, no matter what it may be.

"The answer is: No." Cloud closed his eyes and focused on what was going on inside him. Trying not to care about the close proximity of the cause of so much of his current pain. Trying to communicate something that barely made sense to himself. "Who really would sit there and think that his life was going to end up like ours have? Cut off from friends and family, barely making enough to get buy and not wanting to risk doing anything else, not wanting to cheat out way through life for once? It's different here, Zack. We aren't revered as heros like we once were. We have to find a way to get on with life without drawing on the powers that we know lay latent within us. And we want to do it while still remaining true to ourselves."

Silence reigned after that statement and all the three men shifted uncomfortably as they waited for some sort of sign. Something that would tell them where to go from there.

**_Aeris' the first girl I kissed  
I was so nervous that I nearly missed  
She's had a couple of kids since then  
I haven't seen her since God knows when_**

"I have a son, you know." Zack's voice was the first to break the uncomfortable silence. "A beautiful baby boy. I wanted so badly for the two of you to be there to see him on the day of his birth, but you'd moved and no one knew where you'd gone." His nervous laughter filled the empty alley. "Can you believe it? Me, a dad? Shit, things can change so quickly. You turn around and there's some kid you helped create running around making a mess of things."

Another long pause. "It's made me think about my life and all the stupid shit I've done. Even back when I was a fucking SOLDIER in Midgar. I didn't think about anyone but myself, until I met you, Cloud. You showed me that it was okay to take one day at a time and enjoy myself while I was doing it. I wasn't exactly the best friend to you back then, and I haven't been the best friend to you now, I know that, I've come to terms with it. I just can't stop thinking that I can make things right, you know? I just keep thinking that you can forgive me, that one more day won't matter, one more week won't make a difference, but one more day and one more week turned into years and then there was little Jake."

"Shit, I've fucked up bad this time, haven't I?"

There was a loud click as Sephiroth dropped the kickstand and swung one of his long legs over the bike. Two pairs of eyes turned to him as he straightened up to his full height. Cloud's wide and full of so many emotions ranging from confusion to hatred to... Was that pity? Sephiroth didn't care. Zack's eyes were just as guarded as they'd always been. Hiding behind a mask of false cheer.

"We have all done things we would rather forget. It does not matter at what time they were done. We could be reincarnated twenty times from this point, and yet, we still will not be able to forget what happened that first time. We will never be able to forget the mistakes we made, the things we did to the people we claimed to love." Sephiroth paused in order to let his words sink in before continuing. "It is up to the two of you what you are going to do about it. I know that I have placed the past where it belongs, behind me."

**_Oh oh oh oh  
Oh God I, I _**

Every memory of looking out the back door  
I have the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor  
It's hard to say it, time to say it  
Goodbye goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door  
I found the photo of the person that I was looking for  
It's hard to say it, time to say it  
Goodbye goodbye

No one dared to move. No one dared to breathe. They all knew he was right. This wasn't Midgar. This wasn't their Planet. This wasn't their old life. Nothing they had done in the past had any bearing on what was going on in the present. They had never been able to bury the ghosts of the men they had once been, ultimately trying to shape themselves to be the way they used to be, no matter how miserable they had been.

It was all they had ever known.

It looked as though most of their friends had moved on, however. The Turks were probably still fulfilling some odd sense of duty, and Reeve had taken on a job similar to the one he used to hold. Other than that... No one else seemed to care much.

Tifa was married and off learning how to be a nurse, a far cry from the violent martial artist that she'd once been.

Yuffie and Nanaki were being models somewhere in the world, no thoughts of some ancient duty they may have once possessed on their shoulders.

Barret was gone, off digging somewhere in the desert, similar to what he used to do, but with the purpose being to find and reassemble, not to find and profit.

Even Cid and Vincent seemed to be perfectly okay with their new realities. Cid was fine being Vincent's agent, tinkering on things here and there just because. And Vincent, hell, gymnastics was so far from what he used to do that it was slightly frightening just to think about it.

Even Sephiroth had a point. He might not enjoy hauling concrete and building buildings, but he was used to it, and would rather being doing something hands on instead of wallowing in the past.

They were the only two who were really stuck in a past that neither of them could bring themselves to forget.

**_I miss that town  
I miss the faces  
You can't erase  
You can't replace it  
I miss it now  
I can't believe it  
So hard to stay  
Too hard to leave it _**

If I could relive those days  
I know the one thing that would never change

"Look, I am not expecting the both of you to forget everything that happened in Midgar. That would be irresponsible and asinine." Sephiroth was getting irritated at the way the other two were stalling and not wanting to speak, even though it was clear that they had both learned a valuable lesson from his speech. "There were good times as well as bad. I know that I would not wish to forget all the laughs we shared and all the fun you forced me into having."

"I miss it sometimes." Cloud almost whispered. "I miss being in training, even though it was hard and not worth it in the end. I miss spending the evenings that the two of you were in town in one of your rooms, just talking and laughing and being, well, a teenager. It was nice to do it here, nice to be able to go out and party and make it through school together, but it just wasn't the same. There wasn't the same sense of danger. What if someone came along? I wasn't supposed to be out that late. I wasn't supposed to even know the two of you."

"And then... They way you made me feel, like I was someone special when everyone was telling me that I didn't deserve my place in the company. I... I was flattered. Now... It's just too easy. It doesn't feel like I've earned it."

"It's okay to miss the way we used to be, man." Zack laughed, most likely just trying to lighten the mood like he always did. "I miss it sometimes, too. You're right. There's just something different about not having to work for a friendship. Not having people look at you wherever you go and whisper rumors behind your back. To know that you're not worth it. I'll bet you even miss that little snot in your materia class that always insinuated that he knew you were screwing the two most important SOLDIERs in the organization."

Cloud laughed, he actually laughed. It was so rare for him to laugh that Sephiroth couldn't help but send him a slight smile of encouragement. There had been so much rage and hurt, it was a wonder that anyone managed to do something so simple as laugh any more. "Gods, I didn't even know how much I missed it until you just said that. Shit, that kid annoyed the hell out of me!"

**_Every memory of looking out the back door  
I have the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor  
It's hard to say it, time to say it  
Goodbye goodbye _**

Every memory of walking out the front door  
I found the photo of the person that I was looking for  
It's hard to say it, time to say it  
Goodbye goodbye

Look at this photograph  
Every time I do it makes me laugh

"Are the two of you going to be all right?" Sephiroth asked. He kind of wanted to get going, since he was supposed to get up early for work and all that.

Cloud turned from where he was still laughing and didn't even flinch when Zack slung an arm over his shoulder. They both looked like a pair of children who just pulled some sort of stupid stunt and were rejoicing in not getting caught. The relief hung heavily over all of them.

"Yeah, I think we're good."

_**Every time I do it makes me...**_


End file.
